Update | Hong Kong family-owned bank Dah Sing open-minded about a possible merger
Speculation about a possible takeover of the family-owned lender has increased since rival Chong Hing Bank said it had received overtures
Dah Sing Banking said yesterday it was open-minded about the possibility of a merger or sale but that it was not in such discussions at present.
The third-largest of Hong Kong's four family-owned banks by market capitalisation reported a better-than-expected 35.1 per cent year-on-year jump in first-half net profit yesterday, largely on increased net interest income.
We will focus ... on Greater China, but are not ruling out ... M&A
Speculation that Dah Sing could become a target for acquisition has fuelled its stock price in the past week, after rival Chong Hing Bank said on August 7 it had been approached by potential buyers.
Dah Sing stock has surged 9.4 per cent since that date, outperforming the Hang Seng Index's gain of 2.8 per cent. Chong Hing has soared 16.9 per cent. Dah Sing has the lowest price-to-book value of the city's family-owned banks.
"Since we were spun off from our parent company in 2004 in a separate listing, we have invested a lot in Macau and on the mainland," the bank's managing director, Harold Wong Tsu-hing, told reporters. "We will focus our core business on Greater China, but are not ruling out the possibility of M&A when there is a good opportunity."
The bank earned HK$812 million in the first half, beating the Bloomberg consensus forecast of HK$757 million. It declared an interim dividend of nine HK cents per share.