BANK NEGARA: WE DON’T INTERFERE IN M&A TALKS

KUALA LUMPUR: Bank Negara Malaysia has reiterated that it does not and will not interfere in the negotiations between any parties in relation to mergers and acquisitions (M&As) in the banking industry.

These activities were driven by the market that in turn were based largely on commercial and business considerations, and the central bank only played the role of an enabler in facilitating the merger process, it said in a statement yesterday.

Bank Negara was responding to a local news report titled “What led to the collapse of AmBank-RHB deal” on Friday, which the central bank said was inaccurate and could cause confusion among the players of the banking industry.

“In the reporting of such development, adopting a fair and balanced view should be the norm of journalists. Any insinuation or allegation made on certain parties should be accompanied by the parties’ comments and feedback.

“Mergers in the banking sector are mainly driven by the business considerations of banking institutions themselves.

“It is, therefore, grossly inaccurate and indeed mischievous of the article to conclude that ‘the deal is likely to have failed because the central bank was the only driver pushing the deal to go through’,” it said.

Bank Negara said it gave approval for the parties concerned to discuss and negotiate within a stipulated timeframe.

“During this period, the parties would conduct a comprehensive assessment on the merger after weighing in various considerations. These include assessment of potential synergies, as well as risks arising from their respective business models, operations and systems and after taking into account extensive analysis of both financial and non-financial information,” it said.

Bank Negara said it was also the fiduciary duty of the board of directors of the respective entities to ensure that the merger would ultimately take into account the best interest of stakeholders. Bernama