[THE INVESTOR] Korea Investment & Securities has acquired an Indonesian securities firm to make inroads in the Southeast Asian country, according to news reports on Dec. 19.

KIS has reportedly signed a contract to acquire 75 percent stake in Jakarta-based Danpac Securities. The deal is worth about 40 billion won (US$36.70 million). 

The Korea Investment & Securities headquarters building in the Yeongdeungpo district of Seoul.

The Korean securities firm plans to begin local operations directly from the first half of 2018.

In addition, KIS has introduced a Korean-style home trading system and a mobile trading system in Indonesia to build a customer-friendly online system. It has also expanded its local securities infrastructure. 

“KIS acquired a top 50 Vietnamese company in 2010 that was transformed into a top 10 company in five years. We plan to utilize that experience to be successful in Indonesia. The acquisition of Danpac is also the first step toward our long-term plan be one of Asia’s top investment banks by 2020,” said KIS CEO Yoo Sang-ho. 

Danpac Securities is a privately held company established in 1989. It is a midsized company among 114 securities companies in Indonesia with expertise in trading stocks and bonds. It has a capital of 6.2 billion won, but recorded a return-on-equity of 14.9 percent in 2016 to be ranked in the top 10 in Indonesia’s bond market.

By Alex Lee (alexlee@heraldcorp.com)