ICBC offer $104.8m for stake in Thai bank

Industrial and Commercial Bank of China (ICBC) wants to buy a stake in Thai bank ACL in an attempt to gain a foothold in Thailand’s fast growing economy, Reuters reported. ICBC wants to purchase a 19.26% stake in ACL from Bangkok Bank for US$104.8 million, as well as buying all avaliable shares in ACL at a cost of US$545 million. Thai finance minister Korn Chatikavanij told Bloomberg that the deal would benefit Thailand’s financial sector, giving ACL a market value of around US$330 million. In the last two years ICBC have made aquisitions in Indonesia, Macau, South Africa and Canada.