SBI takes 47.7% stake in Shinsei Bank via tender offer

Jiji Press

December 11, 2021

TOKYO (Jiji Press) — The online financial giant SBI Holdings Inc. said Saturday that its group has successfully completed its tender offer for Shinsei Bank, boosting its equity stake in the Tokyo-based bank to 47.7%.

The SBI group will make the bank a consolidated subsidiary Friday and revamp its management. Preparations will be made to obtain regulatory approval to establish a bank holding company before the group raises its stake above 50%.

On Sept. 10, the group launched the tender offer to raise the stake from some 20% to up to 48%. The bank opposed the move at the beginning, but in late November, it withdrew its takeover defense measure and switched to accepting new executives proposed by the group.

The group completed the takeover bid with the “favorable” results, SBI Holdings said, promising cooperation to “enhance the corporate value” of the bank.

At an extraordinary meeting of Shinsei Bank shareholders to be held in February next year, the group will propose former Financial Services Agency Commissioner Hirofumi Gomi as chairman of the bank and SBI Holdings Senior Vice President Katsuya Kawashima as president of the bank.

The appointments are almost certain to be approved at the extraordinary meeting, while the bank’s existing executives including President Hideyuki Kudo will step down.

The SBI group plans to make Shinsei Bank a core company in its banking operations and boost the bank’s value mainly by strengthening its corporate banking business so that the bank will be able to repay the remaining ¥350 billion in public funds injected into the bank in the past.