Maybank+Bumi-Commerce

Merger of the two could be a win-win for both banks as they complement each other.
Maybank's strengths - Strong deposit and retail franchise - Strong presence in Singapore and Phillipines - Good fee income stream from transactions and insurance - Good asset quality - Strong capital position
Maybank's weaknesses - Could face top mgt vacuum if Amirsham retires in mid-2008 - Lacks presence in Indonesia and looking out for acquisition - Weak IB franchise and lack of capital market presence - Starting to lose consumer loan share , particularly in mortgage loans Bumi-Commerce's strengths -
Leading IB with growing regional presence - Strong presence in Indonesia with option to further expand with Lippo acquisition - Strong mgt team led by Nazir Razak - Good wealth mgt product
Bumi-
Commerce's weaknesses - Weak retail deposit franchise - Lacks banking presence in other ASEAN markets other than Malaysia+Indonesia - No insurance product - Less room to further gear up compared to Maybank
Benefits of a merger :
- Addresses Maybank's management vacuum should Amirsham leave
- Much larger entity and cements top domestic position (close to 40% market share) and emerge as possibly top 3 ASEAN bank
- Good combination of Maybank's strong retail franchise and BCHB's dominant IB
- Combined entity will have better regional footprint (Malaysia, Singapore, Indonesia, Phillipines)
- Room for capital mgt post-merger
- Dispels concerns over Maybank's acquisition plans in Indonesia
- BCHB can tap Maybank's low cost funds and strong retail deposit franchise
- Good cross-selling opportunities : bancassurance (Maybank's), credit card (both equally strong), IB (BCHB), wealth mgt (BCHB), offer trade finance solutions (Maybank), structured products (BCHB) , unit trust and asset mgt (BCHB).