Sumitomo Mitsui Banking Corp. SMBC has acquired 12.25% of Cambodia’s largest bank by assets, Acleda, furthering the Japanese bank's expansion into Southeast Asia, the two banks said on Monday.
SMBC, the main lending arm of SMFG, paid more than Y10 billion $97 million for the stake in the Phnom Penh-headquartered bank, according to a person familiar with the matter. The megabank bought the stake from the International Finance Corporation IFC and will become its top shareholder when the deal closes in September.
Founded in 1993 Acleda has grown from being an NGO into a microfinance institution and is now tapping SMBC to...