Khazanah Nasional Berhad, the investment holding arm of the Malaysian government, announced plans to buy a 52% stake in Indonesia's Bank Lippo over the weekend. The move marks the group's first direct investment in Indonesia's banking sector. It also underlines its determination to ape the success of its forerunner Temasek, the investment arm of the Singaporean govenment, which currently holds a 56% stake in PT Bank Danamon and a 28% stake in Bank Internasional Indonesia.
Analysts have welcomed the decision. I think this is a vote of confidence on the outlook of the country, says Raymond Kosasih, a research analyst at Deutsche Verdhana Indonesia.
He adds, For...
