TAIPEI: On Monday, Taiwan’s financial regulator denied rival Shin Kong’s takeover attempt by financial conglomerate CTBC, citing incomplete plans.
Last month, CTBC made an unexpected bid for Shin Kong, rejecting a plan for Shin Kong to combine with Taishin, another peer. According to Shin Kong, Taishin is the bidder it prefers.
The financial services sector in Taiwan is fragmented and primarily focused on the local market. Taishin and Shin Kong intend to combine in order to increase their global competitiveness and broaden their market reach.
Reporters were informed by Vice Chair of the Financial Supervisory Commission Chiu Shu-chen that CTBC’s plans were not comprehensive and that the commission had requested additional documentation from the company for its bid, but not all of it complied with regulatory standards. She continued, though, by saying that the regulator still supports “benign” mergers and acquisitions by the financial sector that uphold market order.
Last week, Taishin announced that it would increase its offer for Shin Kong by 25% to roughly T$222.4 billion ($6.98 billion), in what would be the largest financial services industry merger in Taiwan history.
