KDB chief not keen on KEB takeover

High price and post-takeover issues discourage local bidders to bid for once popular M&A target.

Lone Star Funds Chairman John Grayken may now feel anxious as his third attempt to sell off the fund's controlling 50.02 percent stake in Korea Exchange Bank (KEB) is likely to go adrift even before the bidding process begins.

Heads of all major local banks, which have been considered potential buyers of the nation's fifth largest lender, have expressed their intention not to participate in the takeover bid for the once most popular mergers and acquisition (M&A) target.

Korea Development Bank CEO Min Euoo-sung recently said that he has no intention to join in the bidding race. "We already told Lone Star that we would not partake in the bidding race. I don't think it is desirable for the state-run lender to purchase it at such a high price,'' Min told reporters Friday during a visit to Uzbekistan.

View the full story in Korea Times.