Local investors offer talks for Rupali take over
Tuesday, 14 August 2007
A group of local investors have expressed renewed interests to buy 67 per cent shares of the state-run Rupali Bank and invited the government to the negotiation table, officials said Monday, reports bdnews24.com.
"We are ready to sit for negotiations based on our offer. We have the legal right to talks if the negotiation with the first bidder failed," Matiul Islam, chairman of Domestic Investor Consortium, told the news agency, Monday.
The consortium, comprising 11 banks and two insurers, had earlier offered $100 million for Rupali's 67 per cent stake and qualified as the second highest bidder after Saudi Prince Bandar Bin Abdul Rahman Al Saud offered $330 million for the shares.
The consortium proposed to take care of Rupali's liabilities through negotiations while Prince Bandar asked the government to take all the liabilities of Rupali including bad debts, said a senior official with the Privatisation Commission, seeking anonymity.
The consortium's offer came when the government has been waiting to hear from the Saudi prince on signing a sales and purchase agreement.
Both the parties earlier closed down their negotiations on Rupali's liabilities and bad loans.
Prince Bandar is yet to respond although the government's deadline for signing the deal ended on July 15.
The prince offered the $330 million bid for a 67 per cent stake and later increased the offer to $458 million for a 94 per cent stake in Rupali.
"We are trying to know the specific date when the prince would sign the agreement," Privatisation Commission Chairman Abu Solaiman Chowdhury told the agency.
He said he had received a proposal from the consortium seeking to start negotiations if talks with the Saudi prince fall apart.
"They have placed a proposal. But we cannot proceed until we are clear about the prince's position," the chairman said.
"We are ready to sit for negotiations based on our offer. We have the legal right to talks if the negotiation with the first bidder failed," Matiul Islam, chairman of Domestic Investor Consortium, told the news agency, Monday.
The consortium, comprising 11 banks and two insurers, had earlier offered $100 million for Rupali's 67 per cent stake and qualified as the second highest bidder after Saudi Prince Bandar Bin Abdul Rahman Al Saud offered $330 million for the shares.
The consortium proposed to take care of Rupali's liabilities through negotiations while Prince Bandar asked the government to take all the liabilities of Rupali including bad debts, said a senior official with the Privatisation Commission, seeking anonymity.
The consortium's offer came when the government has been waiting to hear from the Saudi prince on signing a sales and purchase agreement.
Both the parties earlier closed down their negotiations on Rupali's liabilities and bad loans.
Prince Bandar is yet to respond although the government's deadline for signing the deal ended on July 15.
The prince offered the $330 million bid for a 67 per cent stake and later increased the offer to $458 million for a 94 per cent stake in Rupali.
"We are trying to know the specific date when the prince would sign the agreement," Privatisation Commission Chairman Abu Solaiman Chowdhury told the agency.
He said he had received a proposal from the consortium seeking to start negotiations if talks with the Saudi prince fall apart.
"They have placed a proposal. But we cannot proceed until we are clear about the prince's position," the chairman said.