KEB Hana Bank said on Nov. 13 that it has acquired the status of a foreign strategic investor from the Bank for Investment and Development of Vietnam (BIDV), the No. 1 bank in Vietnam in terms of asset volume and one of the four state-run commercial banks.
At the end of October, with the approval of the State Bank of Vietnam, KEB Hana Bank acquired 603,302,706 new shares issued by BIDV for 1.014 trillion won, making it the second largest shareholder to acquire a 15 percent stake.
BIDV is the Vietnam's largest state-owned commercial bank with 95.3 percent of shares held by Vietnam's central bank and has a variety of subsidiaries, including securities, insurance, lease and asset management.
In commemoration of KEB Hana Bank's acquisition of strategic investor status, some 400 Korean and Vietnamese guests, including Hana Financial Group Chairman Kim Jung-tae, KEB Hana Bank President Ji Sung-kyu, BIDV Chairman Phan Duc Tu, Korean Amb. to Vietnam Park No-wan, Vietnamese Deputy Prime Minister Vuong Dinh Hue, and Vietnam's Central Bank Gov. Le Minh Hung attended the event held in Hanoi on Nov. 11.
At the meeting, the two banks decided to improve the asset portfolio of BIDV, which is a major player in corporate finance, by transferring KEB Hana Bank's risk management techniques and personal finance-related know-how, and expand their financial business base together through various cooperation with Hana Financial Group officials in the future.
Hana Financial Group Chairman Kim said, "We sincerely appreciate the opportunity to grow with BIDV. We hope that Korea and Vietnam will play the role of a strong financial bridge to grow together by providing financial services to both local companies and Korean companies entering Vietnam," he said.
Meanwhile, KEB Hana Bank has mainly been operating for Korean companies in Vietnam through two existing outlets in Hanoi and Ho Chi Minh. With the acquisition of the stake, it plans to lead the financial "hallyu" (Korean wave) by providing advanced financial services using the vast network of 1,000 branches and offices in Vietnam held by BIDV and 58,000 ATMs.
