Exclusive-ANZ Gunawan family considering sale of control of Panin bank in Indonesia, sources say By Reuters

By Kane Wu and Yantoultra Ngui

HONG KONG/SINGAPORE (Reuters) – Australian lender ANZ and Indonesia’s Gunawan family are considering selling a combined controlling stake in Jakarta-listed Bank Pan Indonesia Tbk PT (Panin Bank), in which they each hold substantial stakes, three sources who I know the subject matter.

The Gunawan family, which founded the bank in 1971, would be open to reducing its own 46.52 percent stake and selling control of the bank, the three sources said. The founding family’s decision aligns with the Australian lender, which has tried for years to exit the bank without success due to valuation concerns.

A buyer seeking control would have to make a general offer for Panin Bank, which has a market value of about $2.4 billion. Shares of Panin Bank are up about 29% year to date, LSEG data showed.

Shareholders have appointed Citigroup to conduct a sale process, said the sources, who declined to be named because the information is confidential.

Marketing materials were sent to potential buyers, two of them said. A formal sale process is still weeks away, the third source said.

The Gunawan family is flexible about what stake it can sell, depending on the bid price, two of the sources said.

ANZ has a 39.22% stake in the bank, according to LSEG data. Their combined stakes are worth about $2 billion, based on Wednesday’s closing price of 1,540 rupees per share, LSEG data showed.

ANZ and Citigroup declined to comment.

The Gunawan family could not be reached for comment. Panin Bank referred Reuters’ question to its shareholders.

ANZ has been trying to divest its stake in Panin Bank since 2013, but valuation concerns have hampered its efforts. It first bought a 29% stake in the Jakarta-listed lender in 1999, which was later increased.

The auction of ANZ’s stock last year attracted Japanese lenders Mitsubishi UFJ (NYSE: ) Financial Group and Sumitomo Mitsui (NYSE: ) Financial Group, but no deal was struck, sources said.

The sale comes as part of ANZ’s strategy to cut low-return business lines and reduce exposure to retail and wealth banking in Asia to increase return on equity.

In May, ANZ completely exited its investment in Malaysian lender AMMB Holdings, selling its entire 5.2 percent stake for up to $149 million, two months after selling a 16.5 percent interest for about 2 .10 billion ringgit ($498.46 million).

Mu’min Ali Gunawan, 85, founded the bank and is the ultimate beneficiary of the family’s share, according to bank disclosures.

His children Chandra Gunawan and Lionto Gunawan hold positions in Panin Bank as Commissioner and Director respectively.

Panin Bank’s net profit fell 8.16 percent from a year earlier to 3.01 trillion rupees ($195.65 million) last year due to lower net interest income, its annual report for 2023.

By mid-2024, Panin Bank was trading at 0.73 times its book value, LSEG data showed.

(1 USD = 4.2130 ringgit)

(1 USD = 15,385.0000 rupiah)