Bangkok--14 May--Standard Chartered Bank
Standard Chartered Bank (Thai) pcl. announced that its Board of Directors has passed a resolution approving the delisting of its shares from the Stock Exchange of Thailand (SET).
The delisting process, which is expected to be completed by Q4, 2007, will have no impact on business operations and governance structure of Standard Chartered Bank (Thai) pcl.
Mr. Kai Nargolwala, Chairman of the Board of Directors of Standard Chartered Bank (Thai) pcl. said the delisting was planned so that the Bank would be in full compliance with a market enhancing policy issued by SET in February this year. This was consistent with the bank’s practice of complying fully with regulator policies and operating to the highest corporate governance standards, he added.
The policy recommends listed companies be encouraged to maintain no less than 150 minority shareholders and ensure that an aggregate shareholding of not less than 15% of its paid-up capital be held by minority shareholders.
Presently, the UK-based Standard Chartered Bank holds 99.83% of Standard Chartered Bank (Thai) pcl’s ordinary shares, with the remainder 0.17% held by minority shareholders.
Mr. Nargolwala said that as the Standard Chartered Bank (Thai) pcl had no intention to raise further capital through the stock market, which could increase the aggregate shareholding of minority shareholders, the Board had decided to be proactive by filing a delisting request to SET on 11 May, 2007.
“After delisting, Standard Chartered Bank (Thai) pcl will still operate under the supervision of the Bank of Thailand, the Ministry of Finance, the Ministry of Commerce and the Securities Exchange Commission. The bank will continue to be managed to the highest standards and decisions will continue to be made based on what is in the best interests of shareholders as a whole. Our customers will continue to benefit from our being a locally incorporated commercial bank with international strengths,” said Mr. Nargolwala.
Standard Chartered Bank (Thai) pcl
Standard Chartered employs over 60,000 people representing over 100 nationalities in more than 56 countries in the Asia Pacific Region, South Asia, the Middle East, Africa, the United Kingdom and the Americas. Standard Chartered is one of the world’s most international banks and is ranked among the top 25 of FTSE 100 companies.
Standard Chartered Bank (Thai) offers innovative products and services - Consumer Banking provides credit cards, personal loans, deposit taking, wealth management, mortgage, SME Banking to individuals and small to medium sized enterprises; Wholesale Banking provides corporate and institutional clients with services in trade finance, cash management, lending, securities services, foreign exchange, debt capital markets and corporate finance.
The Bank is trusted for its standard of governance and corporate responsibility as well as its commitment to making a difference in the communities in which it operates.
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