StanChart seeks acquisitions after raising US$743m from issue

Standard Chartered, which has been expanding in Asia over the past year, has raised US$743 million through preference shares represented by American depositary shares, with the funds to be used for general purposes including acquisitions.

The London-based lender has issued 7,500 ADSs, with each ADS representing one preference share, each share with a paid-up amount of US$100,000.

The preference shares will pay a semi-annual dividend at 6.409 per cent of the paid-up amount until early 2017.

Thereafter, the share will pay dividend at a rate of 1.51 percentage points above the three-month London interbank offered rate per year, the lender said.

Last month the bank completed its US$1.2 billion acquisition of Hsinchu International Bank, the seventh-largest private sector bank in Taiwan by loans and deposits. That followed its purchase last year of Korea First Bank and a 19.9 per cent stake in Tianjin-based Bohai Bank.

Peter Sands, Standard Chartered's new group chief executive, last month said that additional acquisitions were possible, in the mainland among other places, provided that the potential targets complemented the lender's organic initiatives.