Taiwan firm puts on hold SinoPac merger talks
China Development Financial Holding Corp, one of Taiwan's largest venture capital firms, has put its acquisition plans on hold, saying it will not enter the mainland market any time soon.
China Development had previously been in merger talks with consumer bank SinoPac Holdings.
'All of the talking [with SinoPac] has been stopped for two months because we think right now the most important thing is restructuring,' chairman Diana Chen Ming-hsuan said.
She was appointed to the top spot of the financial holding company in June, after the resignation of scandal-plagued former chairman Liu Tai-ying.
A month after Ms Chen and new president Chao Yuan-chi took over, the company announced a NT$16.9 billion (HK$3.86 billion) provision to cover investment losses and bad loans.
'We're not in the mood to talk about acquisitions in the next one to two months,' Ms Chen said. 'By the end of the year, then maybe we'll see.'
Restructuring will focus on internal consolidation of the firm's holdings, which include Grand Cathay Securities and First Taiwan Securities.
China Development functions more as a venture capital and investment company than a traditional loans and deposits financial institution, forcing the company to take a different strategy on consolidation and mainland expansion.
Company executives speaking at Taipei Foreign Correspondents' Club yesterday said they had no immediate plans to enter the mainland market directly.
Ms Chen said the company had a timeline for mainland expansion, but refused to reveal it.
Mr Chao pointed out that the lack of links across the Taiwan Strait remained a hindrance for their mainland development plans.
