The headquarters of Kasikorn Bank are pictured in Bangkok, Thailand, January 5, 2016. REUTERS/Athit Perawongmetha/File Photo Acquire Licensing Rights
HANOI/SINGAPORE, Aug 22 (Reuters) – Thailand’s second-biggest lender Kasikornbank (KBANK.BK) is in talks to buy consumer finance provider Home Credit Vietnam in a deal of up to $1 billion that would further its push to expand in Vietnam, two sources said.
The Bangkok-based lender, also called KBank, hopes to become one of Vietnam’s top 20 banks in terms of assets by 2027. It has total assets worth $119.7 billion, second only to Bangkok Bank (BBL.BK) in Thailand, Refinitiv data showed.
The news comes at a time when Vietnamese banks are under pressure as a slowing economy and protracted turmoil in the real estate sector have stoked an uptick in bad loans and triggered broad rate cuts.
A potential deal would underscore a trend of…
