DBS, Japan’s top lenders said to be among bidders for Indonesia’s Panin Bank

KUALA LUMPUR – Asian banks including DBS Group Holdings, Mitsubishi UFJ Financial Group (MUFG) and Sumitomo Mitsui Financial Group are among potential suitors for Bank Pan Indonesia, according to people familiar with the matter.

The three lenders have submitted separate preliminary proposals to buy the Jakarta-listed bank, known as Panin Bank, the people said, asking not to be identified because the matter is private.

Panin Bank has also drawn interest from other Asian financial institutions, the sources said, adding that considerations are ongoing and no final decisions have been made.

Panin Bank’s shares have risen 57 per cent in 2024, giving it a market value of about US$2.9 billion (S$3.9 billion).

Bloomberg News reported in September that ANZ Group Holdings was considering reviving a sale of its 38.8 per cent stake in Panin Bank as part of its strategy to reduce positions in some long-held Asian assets.

Indonesia’s Gunawan family, which controls 46 per cent of Panin Bank, is also ready to consider joining a sale for the right price, the people said.

Both MUFG and Sumitomo Mitsui – Japan’s largest banks – have previously considered bidding for Panin Bank, but those efforts stalled on valuation concerns.

The Gunawan family’s reluctance to give a board seat to incoming investors hampered ANZ’s earlier negotiations with suitors, Bloomberg reported in 2015.

Representatives of ANZ, DBS, MUFG and Sumitomo Mitsui declined to comment.

Panin Bank president director Herwidayatmo said the bank’s management does not have information regarding the acquisition plan. BLOOMBERG