Finance Ministry wants new TMB shares
The Finance Ministry wishes to exercise its right to buy new shares in TMB Bank worth Bt3.1 billion, caretaker Deputy Finance Minister Chaiyot Sasomsub said yesterday.
However, the Cabinet will make a final decision today on whether the purchase will go ahead. He declined to reveal details of the deal, but said the market price of TMB stock is currently higher than their book value and it is hard to find reasons why the ministry should not buy the shares. Caretaker Finance Minister Thanong Bidaya has reportedly been trying to distance himself from the deal so as to avoid being accused of having conflicts of interest. Thanong was formerly president of the TMB. Earlier, the ministry was reportedly busy convincing its investment arm, the Vayupak Fund, to invest in TMB. However, the fund's board of directors was reportedly asking for a sharp discount on TMB's Bt3 per share selling price. Chaiyot refused to confirm a report that the ministry would borrow money from the Government Savings Bank. But he said the ministry had sold some of its shares in MCOT - shares that it would buy back later. Reports have suggested that the ministry will sell about 4 per cent of its 70-per-cent stake in MCOT. The ministry currently holds a 31-per cent stake in TMB. It earlier rescued the bank, which suffered heavily in the 1997 financial crisis.
Wichit Chaitrong The Nation
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