Woori keen on M&As of Southeast Asia banks

The bank excluded China in moves as it does not allow foreign financial companies to have management rights.

Woori Bank is looking to increase its presence in Southeast Asia through mergers and acquisitions (M&A) of lenders in the region, according to its CEO Lee Chong-hwi.

In a recent exclusive interview with The Korea Times, Lee said that he is carefully looking at a few banks in the region.

“We are considering increasing our presence in Vietnam and Cambodia by merging and acquiring lenders or opening new branches there. We already have two branches in Vietnam and are moving to enlarge them,” Lee said.

He said Korea’s second-largest lender by assets is making a shortlist for possible M&A targets in the region, but did not reveal any names, saying confidentiality was a key factor for successful M&A.

Lee said Woori will make Southeast Asia part of its globalization plan.

“Southeast Asian nations have many pluses. Many Korean companies are doing business there and the number of Korean expatriates in them is increasing,” he said.

View the full story in Korea Times.