TEMPO.CO, Jakarta - Islamic lender Bank Muamalat Indonesia is set to expand after a rights issue that saw PT Minna Padi Investama Sekuritas Tbk acquired 51 percent of its stake. Muamalat CEO Purnomo B. Soetadi said that the latest capital injection will be used for business expansion of the first Islamic bank in the country.
Purnomo told Antara news agency that shareholders have approved to issue 80 million rights shares. “Minna Padi, either severally or jointly with other investors, will become the standby buyer(s),” he said.
Minna Padi will improve Muamalat performance both in the short-term and the long-term, he said. However, the rights issue transaction is still being processed so that capital injection has yet to affect the bank’s operations and businesses.
“The share subscriptions will only come into effect after the Financial Service Authority’s approval.”
Through the Indonesia Stock Exchange information disclosure on Wednesday, Minna Padi management announced the acquisition of 51 percent stake of Bank Muamalat with a potential value of Rp4.5 trillion.
“Minna Padi plans to become a shareholder by becoming a standby buyer in the rights issue,” president director Djoko Joelijanto said. The transaction value is equal to at least 57 percent of Bank Muamalat’s issued and paid-up capital.
Last year, Bank Muamalat also received an injection of tier 1 capital from shareholders. Then-Muamalat CEO Endy Abdurrahman said that the company would be focusing on developing retail and consumer banking that includes a greater portion of people’s housing credit (KPR) distribution. Bank Muamalat had also planned to improve Hajj and Umrah saving accounts.
FERY F | GHOIDA RAHMAH
