Friday 22 March 2013

Banking Sector - Clearing the air over individual shareholding limit


-  The press recently reported Bank Negara Malaysia (BNM) governor Tan Seri Zeti Akhtar Aziz as confirming that the Financial Services Act (FSA) will not affect the shareholdings of Public Bank (PBB), Hong Leong Bank (HLBB) and AMMB Group Holdings (AMMB).

-  The FSA, which will be enforced from mid-2013, has reiterated that the limit on individual shareholding is 10%, which is the same limit under the Banking and Financial Institutions Act (BAFIA).

-  To recap, Tan Sri Teh Hong Piow’s stake in PBB is 24.1%. Tan Sri Quek Leng Chan’s effective stake in Hong Leong Financial Group (HLFG) is 78.3%. HLFG in turns holds 63.5% in HLBB.

-  The governor said that the FSA will not affect the shareholding in banks like PBB, HLBB and AMMB as the stakes were held even before the BAFIA was implemented in 1989.

-  The governor added that the shareholding limit will affect those who acquired more than 10% after the implementation of BAFIA.

-  The FSA will provide the central bank with more legal and enforcement powers in its actions to enhance governance and regulation.

-  We believe the share prices of both HLBB and PBB are already reflecting expectations on the existing shareholding structure to remain.

-  Thus, the confirmation that the individual shareholders of PBB and HLBB are not required to reduce their shareholding to a maximum of 10% under the FSA is likely in-line with our and market expectations.

-  However, the confirmation is positive as it removes any further speculation over the possibility of the individual shareholders of both banks being required to pare down their stakes, post implementation of the FSA.

-  We remain overweight on the sector.

Source: AmeSecurities

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