FSC approves SinoPac Financial plan to acquire King's Town Bank

Taipei, June 19 (CNA) The Financial Supervisory Commission (FSC) has approved an application filed by SinoPac Financial Holding Co. to acquire King's Town Bank, the local top financial regulator said Thursday.

The FSC said the acquisition is expected to provide Bank SinoPac, the banking arm of the financial holding firm, with the second highest number of branches in Taiwan, behind only Taiwan Cooperative Bank.

Following a two-and-a-half month review after the application was submitted in early April following approval by shareholders of the two financial institutions separately in March, Wang Yun-chung (王允中), deputy director of the FSC's Banking Bureau, said the FSC expects the deal to create synergies for SinoPac Financial as their businesses are complimentary.

King's Town Bank is based in southern Taiwan, while the branches and offices of SinoPac Financial are largely in the north, Wang said.

After the acquisition, which it was announced in December 2024 will proceed through a cash-stock swap for almost NT$60 billion (US$2.03 billion), Bank SinoPac is expected to see its branches rise to 191, the second largest in the local banking sector, up from No. 12 currently, Wang added.

King's Town Bank has 66 branches in Taiwan, including 43 in the Yunlin-Chiayi-Tainan areas and five in Kaohsiung, southern Taiwan, while most of Bank SinoPac's 125 branches are located in the north.

The combined assets of Bank SinoPac and King's Town Bank are expected to rise to NT$3 trillion, making Bank SinoPac the 12th largest bank in Taiwan, up from its current 13th spot, Wang said.

For SinoPac Financial, its total assets will rise to NT$3.5 trillion to become the 13th largest financial holding firm in Taiwan, up from its current 14th place, he said.

In addition, Bank SinoPac is expected to account for 4.24 percent of total bank deposits in Taiwan, up from its current 3.74 percent, boosting its ranking from 13th to 12th, while it is expected to account for 4.37 percent of total lending, compared to its current 3.79 percent, pushing up the bank's ranking from 14th to 12th, Wang added.

Wang cited a plan submitted by SinoPac Financial as saying it hopes to complete the acquisition by the end of next year. After the acquisition, King's Town Bank will be delisted from the local main board.

SinoPac Financial has promised to retain about 700 employees currently working for King's Town Bank, Wang said.

Kerry Hsu (許如玫), chief financial officer of SinoPac Financial, has said the company will issue new shares to finance the acquisition deal, adding that the new shares could dilute its earnings by 9.15 percent but the financial impact will be limited.