Banks deny rumors of heavy share trading losses

Monday, May 12, 2008
Local banks have denied rumors circulating since last Tuesday that some lenders had taken heavy losses on stock investments because of the share market’s 46% plunge this year.

Asia Commercial Bank, the only bank listed on Hanoi’s exchange, slipped VND2,300, hitting the 3% daily trading limit, to close at VND76,900 on Wednesday.
In a bid to reassure investors, Asia Commercial Bank Investment Board Chairman Nguyen Duc Kien Thursday said the bank’s exposure to the share market was small.

“Asia Commercial Bank has invested VND1.18 trillion (US$111.4 million) in shares, of which VND674 billion ($41.7 million) was used to buy shares of strategic partners at preferential prices,” Kien said.

“These investments, which make up only 1.38% of the bank’s total asset, are long-term and not affected by market moves.

Last year, we earned VND1.2 billion ($74.2 million) from investing in shares and also reclaimed all of the starting capital pumped in the sector.

“We are now investing in bonds. We bought bonds worth VND200 billion ($12.4 million) two days ago.”
Also on Thursday, Viet Nam International Commercial Joint-Stock
Bank, an unlisted bank known as VIB Bank, revealed it had invested 99.37% of VND6.67 trillion ($412 million) in the government’s bonds and bills last year, with the remainder used to buy shares.

The bank’s share price on the informal market, known as over-the-counter (OTC) market, fell to VND16,000-VND17,000 from VND17,000-VND18,000 last Wednesday.

The Hanoi-based bank said its business in the first three months of the year was stable, with total assets increasing more than 110 percent year-on-year.

The share price of many unlisted banks on the OTC market slumped Wednesday because of the rumors banks were overexposed to the share market.

Last Wednesday, Vietcombank dropped to VND38,000-VND40,000 from VND46,000-VND48,000, Military Bank fell to VND18,000-VND19,000 from VND23,000-VND24,000, An Binh Bank slipped to VND10,000-VND11,000 from VND12,000-VND13,000 and Export-Import Bank declined to VND26,000-VND27,000 from VND30,000-VND31,000. (Thanh Nien)