SYDNEY, 26 November 1996/Medianet International/Asianet/-- Macquarie Bank Chairman David Clarke announced today that Brunei Investment and Commercial Bank (BICB), a wholly owned subsidiary of the Brunei Investment Agency (BIA), has acquired 19,957,461 shares in Macquarie Bank Limited from Hill Samuel & Co. BV being Hill Samuel's total shareholding. The transaction was arranged and executed by Macquarie Equities Limited.
The purchase represents 13.4 per cent of Macquarie Bank's issued fully paid shares and will make BICB the largest shareholder in the Bank.
The purchase price was $7.60 per share. Hill Samuel and BICB have also agreed to share equally the Bank's interim dividend which was declared on November 19 at 18 cents per fully paid ordinary share.
The transaction has received the appropriate approval from the Federal Treasurer under the Banks (Shareholdings) Act and the Australian Government's foreign investment policy guidelines.
As the investment arm of the Government of Brunei, the BIA is a major South East Asian based investment institution.
Mr Clarke welcomed BICB as a major shareholder.
"The Brunei Investment Agency is a distinguished and widely known investment institution, which has very substantial funds under management," Mr Clarke said.
Macquarie Bank Managing Director Allan Moss said: "Macquarie Bank has developed a good relationship with the Agency and its senior management. We are delighted that they have become associated with the Bank as a major shareholder, and we are confident that BICB will prove to be a constructive and long term investor in Macquarie."
"Macquarie has invited BICB to be represented on the Bank's Board," Mr Clarke said.
Mr Clarke said that Hill Samuel had been closely associated with Macquarie Bank since its inception. "We have greatly valued our association with Hill Samuel over this period and the contribution it has made to our development."
"The Bank's predecessor, Hill Samuel Australia Limited, operated as a wholly owned subsidiary of Hill Samuel from 1969 to 1985. Hill Samuel continued to be the Bank's largest shareholder, and has been represented on our Board, since the establishment of Macquarie Bank in 1985," Mr Clarke said.
Fact Sheet Attached
For further information please contact:
David Clarke, Chairman, Macquarie Bank Ltd 02 9237 3413 Allan Moss, Managing Director, Macquarie Bank Ltd 02 9237 3483 Richard Sheppard, Deputy Managing Director, Macquarie Bank Ltd 02 9237 3251 General inquiries: Lucy Brogden, Manager Special Projects, Macquarie Bank Ltd 02 9237 4092
(more)