bodyType

customContents

entityId

entityUuid

articlePageQuery

filter

article

articleBaseAdvertisingInfoArticle

articleListArticle

articleSeoArticle

hooksArticleAcknowledgementGateOverlayArticle

hooksTrackPageViewArticle

hooksContentInterestArticle

articleLinkingDataContent

hooksAmpRedirectArticle

articleSchemaContent

liveArticle

advertZone

sentiment

contentLock

topics

types

sections

paywallTypes

createdDate

publishedDate

urlAlias

moreOnThisArticles

sponsorType

commentCount

authorLocations

authors

corrections

displaySlideShow

multimediaEmbed

printHeadline

seriesContainer

articleSpeeches

socialHeadline

headline

images

flag

firstTopic

glossary

flattenTypeIds

image

relatedLinks

relatedNewsletters

__typename

sponsor

pdfFiles

seriesReverseOrder

series

disableOffPlatformContent

published

updatedDate

summary

subHeadline

body

keywords

readingTime

customTimezone

liveContents

SCMP Reporter

FINANCIAL services group MBf Asia (MACC) and its United States associate MBf USA are set to be bought by its senior Hong Kong management in a deal worth about $800 million.

  The managers, who left MACC in an 'amicable' departure last week, were in final negotiations with Malaysian-based parent company MBf Holdings, according to sources. They said the deal could be completed this week.

  The former MACC managers were also planning to bid for a New York Stock Exchange-listed company in a separate deal worth about US$400 million (HK$2.94 billion), sources said.

  MACC's top three executives - president Leslie Merszei, Gordon Yin and Paul Miller - resigned last week and have secured financial backing to purchase the company from MBf Holdings.

  Mr Merszei would not comment, but company sources said a deal was '90 per cent certain'.

  If successful, the new team would sell or liquidate the financial advisory and unit trust arms of MACC, with emphasis shifting to its credit card and property management businesses, sources said.

  MACC was formed three years ago as an autonomous but wholly owned subsidiary of MBf Holdings, a financial services conglomerate.

  It was managed from Hong Kong but 'cultural differences' are said to have arisen with the Malaysian parent, leading to the buy-out.

  The management team will take over the entire MACC business except the South Pacific trading group Carpenters. That company will be retained by the parent.

  A final hurdle to the deal was gaining approval from banks for MACC's credit-card debt liability to be transferred to the new management company, sources said. MACC is understood to have an outstanding credit-card debt of about $800 million.

  MACC runs the MasterCard franchise for Hong Kong, Thailand, the Philippines, Taiwan and Australia, which along with its property management companies in Southeast Asia contribute the bulk of its profits.

  The firm had revenues of about $280 million last year and employs 5,000 people in Asia. There are apparently no plans for major job cuts.

  The main criteria in rationalising the diverse financial services operation was to axe business lines regulated by market watchdogs such as the Securities and Futures Commission, sources said.

  MACC executives are understood to have offered the company's unit trust managers a similar buy-out opportunity, but were turned down.

   MBf USA, although smaller than MACC, has a listing on the electronic Nasdaq exchange in the United States. That would be kept and a rights issue was likely to fund its fast-growing condom business in Asia, sources said.

  The US-based firm owns the Playboy brand of condoms, which has become a best-seller in a number of Asian countries. It is also the largest supplier of surgical gloves in the US.

  MACC's planned takeover of the NYSE-listed company was described as the acquisition of one of the most famous brand names in the world. The MACC buy-out team saw potential for the company in Asia as well as an established position in the US market, sources said.

  MACC is the international arm of MBf Holdings Berhad, which along with its sister company MBf Capital is publicly listed in Kuala Lumpur with a joint market capitalisation of about $14 billion.

  It has a mix of banking and broking services in Malaysia and was the subject of a failed takeover bid last year.

  MACC was established to manage regional credit card franchises and financial services outside of Malaysia.

  Senior management are understood to have grown unhappy with the parent firm, although the decision to attempt a buy-out was made recently.



Managers in $800m bid for MBf