People enter a branch of Bank of Tokyo Mitsubishi UFJ Ltd in Tokyo (file). Mitsubishi UFJ Financial Group’s purchase of up to 75% of Thailand’s fifth largest lender would be the biggest acquisition by a Japanese bank in Southeast Asia.

Reuters, AFP/Tokyo/Hong Kong

Japan’s Mitsubishi UFJ Financial Group (MUFG) has agreed to buy a controlling stake in Thailand’s Bank of Ayudhya for up to ¥560bn ($5.61bn) as Japanese lenders expand into fast-growing Southeast Asian economies to beat slower growth at home.

MUFG’s purchase of up to 75% of Thailand’s fifth largest lender would be the biggest acquisition by a Japanese bank in Southeast Asia. It also ends General Electric Co’s six-year-old investment in Ayudhya, with GE raising $2.41bn by selling its stake in the Thai bank in two tranches.

The deal requires approval from Thailand’s finance ministry as foreign ownership in domestic banks is capped at 49%. MUFG told a briefing it believes Bangkok would “take a favourable view” and said it was considering merging its Thai operations with Ayudhya to comply with Thailand’s single presence policy on bank ownership.

“With its potential for future growth and a track record of consistent economic growth, Thailand has become an economic centre of Greater Mekong,” Mitsubishi said in a statement.

“Thailand and Japan enjoy a close relationship with numerous Japanese companies now operating in Thailand,” it added.

“(Bank of Ayudhya) is one of the leading commercial banks in Thailand offering diversified financial services while holding wide range of client base and market knowledge.”

MUFG has sizable operations in Japanese Corps in Thailand, where Toyota Motor Corp and other conglomerates own manufacturing plants.

Under the terms of the deal, MUFG will make a tender offer priced at 39 baht per share, allowing GE to sell its entire 25.33% stake in the Thai bank. Thailand’s Ratanarak Group, which founded the bank in 1945, has agreed to retain a 25% stake in Ayudhya.

MUFG is paying a price-to-book ratio of 2.02 times for March 2013, which represents a 46% premium to the average P/B ratio of Thai banks, according to Thomson Reuters data.

The tender offer is expected to start in early November and end in December, the statement added.

GE’s sale of its stake in Ayudhya is being closely watched by ING, which is also preparing to offload its 31% stake in Thai lender TMB Bank.

MUFG’s acquisition of Ayudhya comes less than two months after rival Sumitomo Mitsui Financial Group’s bought a $1.5bn stake in Indonesia’s Bank Tabungan Pensiunan Nasional.

Japanese banks and insurers have this year launched deals worth $8.15bn in Southeast Asia, attracted by the region’s strong growth prospects, but their operations have been mostly limited to corporate banking. MUFG’s acquisition of Ayudhya marks its first foray into Asian retail banking outside Japan.

GE acquired a roughly 33% holding in Bank of Ayudhya in 2007 for 22.3bn baht, or $626mn based on the exchange rate at the time. It recouped most of its investment when it sold a 7.6% stake for $466mn in September.

MUFG was one of several bidders for GE’s stake, but sources said the Japanese lender was the most aggressive and had also won the support of the Ratanarak Group.

Morgan Stanley advised GE, while Bank of America Merrill Lynch advised MUFG, sources told Reuters.