DBS

DBS / Indonesia bank rules: Bank Indonesia, Indonesia’s central bank, is expected to limit the max stake a single shareholder can take in the country’s banks from the current 99% to below 50%. This could ruin DBS’ plan to buy Temasek’s 67.4% stake in Bank Danamon, if DBS cannot negotiate an exemption. If the new rules are applied retrospectively, this could also spell uncertainty for OCBC and UOB, which own 84% of PT Bank OCBC Nisp and 99% of PT Bank UOB Indonesia, respectively. The Indonesian market accounts for about 4% and 6% of OCBC’s and UOB’s earnings respectively. The new rules are expected to be announced early next month and will apply to both domestic and foreign investors, although govt-owned banks are unlikely to be affected.