Tuesday April 29, 10:21 AM
HSBC, Lone Star extend deadline for Korea bank deal
SEOUL (AFP) - Global banking giant HSBC said Tuesday it has extended by three months the deadline for completion of a six-billion-dollar deal to buy a South Korean bank from US fund Lone Star.
The deadline for its purchase of a 51 percent stake in Korea Exchange Bank (004940.KS - news) (KEB) was due to expire on April 30 but HSBC said in a statement it has been extended until July 31.
The Dallas-based buyout fund confirmed the extension.
South Korea's Financial Services Commission (FSC) had withheld approval for the deal until court cases regarding Lone Star's original purchase of KEB in 2003 are settled.
HSBC said that if FSC approval is received before July 31, the deadline for the deal will be extended by two months from the date of that approval. It (Frankfurt: A0MLX5 - news) said the agreed purchase price would remain unchanged.
"The proposed transaction is entirely in line with our stated strategy to focus on high-growth economies and I continue to be of the view that it is in the best interest of all KEB stakeholders and of HSBC," group chairman Stephen Green said in the statement.
FSC chairman Jun Kwang-Woo said earlier Tuesday he wants a swift solution to the legal problems over the sale, adding that the delay is damaging South Korea's overseas image.
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