Sales bid for Woori Bank fails due to lack of bidders

An auction to sell state-run Woori Bank failed on Friday due to a lack of bidders, the financial regulator said, the fourth such failed attempt by the government to privatize South Korea's No. 3 bank.

“After closing the bid for Woori Bank's managerial rights, only China's Anbang Property & Casualty Insurance Co. applied for it,” said the Financial Services Commission.

At least two bidders are needed to make the auction valid, according to local laws.

Anbang Insurance is a leading Chinese insurer, with assets of 121 trillion won ($109.3 billion).

The Chinese firm bought the Waldorf Astoria New York hotel for $1.95 billion earlier this year.

Kyobo Life Insurance Co., South Korea's third-biggest life insurer by assets, had expressed its interest in buying the bank, but did not submit a bid.

"We decided to hold back a plan to bid for a controlling stake in Woori Bank due to some problems raised by our investors and consultants," the South Korean insurer said in a statement released minutes before the bid closure.

The South Korean government has tried to privatize Woori Bank and its affiliates since 2010 to recoup some 13 trillion won in bailout money invested in the aftermath of the 1997 Asian financial crisis.

After the three previous attempts to sell the bank during the Lee Myung-bak administration failed, the FSC came up with a new sales plan.

Under the plan, of the nearly 57 percent stake held by the state-run Korea Deposit Insurance Corp., a controlling 30 percent would go to a single buyer, with the remaining 27 percent to be sold to multiple investors.

According to the KDIC, the auction for the minority stake attracted 1.32-fold more applicants than needed, and the winners will be disclosed on Thursday. (Yonhap)