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DJ Parkway Halted For Announcement About Pantai Investment
28/08/2006 08:40

SINGAPORE (Dow Jones)--Singapore healthcare investor Parkway Holdings Ltd. (P27.SG) has halted trading in its shares Monday pending what the company said is the announcement of a corporate proposal involving its shareholding in Malaysia's Pantai Holdings Bhd. (8036.KU).

Parkway last year bought a controlling stake in the Malaysian hospital operator in a deal that upset ethnic Malay groups who argued the acquisition breached Malaysian requirements for indigenous control.

Citing people with knowledge of the deal, the Straits Times newspaper reported Monday that Parkway has drafted Malaysian state-owned investment company Khazanah as its main partner in Pantai to neutralize the controversy.

-By Singapore Bureau; Dow Jones Newswires; 65-6415-4150; djnews.singapore.bureau@dowjones.com
-Edited by Marissa Chew

SINGAPORE PRESS: Khazanah To Join Parkway In Pantai Deal
28/08/2006 08:24 DJ

SINGAPORE (Dow Jones)--Parkway Holdings Ltd. (P27.SG) is drafting Malaysia's state-owned investment company Khazanah as its main partner in Pantai Holdings Bhd (8036.KU) in a move that will remove controversy from the Singapore company's control of the Malaysian healthcare business, the Straits Times reported Monday citing people familiar with the deal.

Parkway and Khazanah have been involved in talks to hammer out a corporate structure that will pave the way for the Malaysian government's investment arm to emerge as a shareholder of Pantai, the newspaper said.

The acquisition of a controlling stake in Pantai in September last year gave Parkway control over two lucrative privatization concessions, exclusive rights to supervise the medical health checks for all foreign workers and a long-term contract to provide support services to government hospitals in the southern states of Malaysia, according to the report.

The deal upset several ethnic Malay groups which argued that the transaction was in breach of Malaysia's privatization policy, which stipulates that concessions to operate services or contracts must be controlled by Malaysian interests, the newspaper said.

Newspaper Web site:

http://straitstimes.asia1.com.sg

-By Singapore Bureau; Dow Jones Newswires; 65-6415-4150; djnews.singapore.bureau@dowjones.com
-Edited by Marissa Chew

(END) Dow Jones Newswires
August 27, 2006 20:24 ET (00:24 GMT)

(END) Dow Jones Newswires
August 27, 2006 20:40 ET (00:40 GMT)

The RAT is surfacing now.

http://rockybru.blogspot.com/2006/08/end-of-road-for-parkway-or-majulah.html

and the smelly RAT?

The Finance Minister or the Finance Minister II, I believe, has known of the problem for quite sometime, way before the PM decared on tv last Monday that "there is no Malaysian company that is controlled by foreign companies".

Read yesterday's StarBiz cover story again: it said the Government had been approached by at least TWO local consortiums proposing to recover the concessions from the Singaporeans. These consortiums could not have been proposing to the newspaper, surely to the Government, and surely way before last Monday's tv interview.

Many weeks ago The Scribe blogged about a Khazanah bailout at Pantai, that it was going to pay a lot more for the shares that Parkway bought from Pantai (which was RM2.10 per share or thereabout). The StarBiz story was also peppered with hints made by the Singaporean owner of Pantai about "the right price".

If Khazanah comes into the picture, that means taxpayers will be asked again to pay for the government's blunders that led to Medivest and Fomema falling into foreign hands. The Finance Ministry, the Bursa and the Securities Commission will have questions to answer.

Taxpayers' funds are bottomless pit, so why worry? NOt enough then next year tax more.

Please...MOF...do not use taxpayers' money to rectify YOUR mistakes! Let other private corporations take over the Pantai shares. *shakes head in disbelief*

Now you know why politikus rebrand the national flag to Jalur Gemilang AKA Glorious/glamorous Strip(e).

Bursa Malaysia should digitize company announcements as they are received, and provide the audience with the pdf scans. This is practical and is done effectively in other exchanges.

It enhances the value of news and is the first step to developing integrity of the system - strategic long term benefits far outweigh the cost or cost-savings.

DJ Khazanah Takes Stake In Pantai,To Make Takeover Offer -2-
28/08/2006 18:22

(MORE TO FOLLOW) Dow Jones Newswires

August 28, 2006 05:32 ET (09:32 GMT)

Copyright (c) 2006 Dow Jones & Company, Inc.

*DJ Khazanah To Offer MYR2.65/Shr For All Pantai Shrs

(MORE TO FOLLOW) Dow Jones Newswires

DJ Khazanah Takes Stake In Pantai, To Make Takeover Offer

SINGAPORE (Dow Jones)--Malaysia's state-owned investment company Khazanah Nasional Bhd. said Monday it will make a takeover offer for Pantai Holdings Bhd (8036.KU) after acquiring a 6.6% stake in the healthcare company.

As part of the transaction, Singapore's Parkway Holdings Ltd. (P27.SG), which owns about 31% of Pantai Holdings, will take a 49% stake in Pantai Irama, which is the unit of Khazanah making the MYR2.65-a-share offer for Pantai Holdings.

Parkway's stake in Pantai Holdings had upset several ethnic Malay groups, which argued its ownership was in breach of Malaysia's privatization policy, which stipulates that concessions to operate services or contracts must be controlled by Malaysian interests.

(MORE TO FOLLOW) Dow Jones Newswires

August 28, 2006 06:02 ET (10:02 GMT)

Copyright (c) 2006 Dow Jones & Company, Inc.

DJ Khazanah Takes Stake In Pantai,To Make Takeover Offer -2-

Khazanah and Parkway have also entered into an agreement for Khazanah to buy Parkway's stake in Pantai Holdings at MYR2.65 a share, the Malaysian investment company said in a statement.

The increased level of ownership of Pantai Holdings will trigger a mandatory takeover offer by Khazanah.

Khazanah said it will have majority equity ownership of Pantai Holdings, while operational and management control of Pantai Holdings' hospitals will be governed through a management agreement to be signed with Parkway at a later date.

-By Singapore Bureau; Dow Jones Newswires; 65-6415-4150; djnews.singapore.bureau@dowjones.com

-Edited by Craig Lewis

(END) Dow Jones Newswires
August 28, 2006 06:22 ET (10:22 GMT)

PARKWAY HLDGS LTD
MISCELLANEOUS :: RESTRUCTURING OF HEALTHCARE INTERESTS IN MALAYSIA AND ESTABLISHMENT OF JOINT VENTURE

so let me get this straight. KJ's former company ECM Libra was a party to the purchase of Pantai by Parkway. Then as an advisor or board member (Cant remember which) of Khazanah, he buys the shares back at 25%+ premium to the latest stock price? Obviously there's more to the story or he's one dumb ass investment banker.

oops...at the original avg purchase price of 2.24 per share...good job singapore. where can i sign up for a deal like that?

Khazanah Nasional Berhad announced that it’s wholly owned subsidiary Pantai Irama Venture S/B (formerly known as Magna Cahaya S B) has become a substantial shareholder of Pantai Holdings Berhad – in a stake 30.92 million shares representing approx 6.6%.in Pantai.

Khazanah also announced Pantai Irama has entered into a conditional sale and purchase agreement with Swiss Zone S/B a wholly owned subsidiary of Parkway Holdings Limited. Parkway is to acquire 134.7 million shares (warrants not included) in Pantai. at RM2.65 per share and Parkway will in turn acquired 49% in Pantai Irama valuing its Pantai shares at RM2.65 per share.

Check details of transaction rationale, ownership & control and valuations and pricing
at
http://powerpresent.blogspot.com/2006/08/malaysia-regains-pantai-holdings-thru.html

DJ UPDATE:Khazanah-Parkway JV Keeps Pantai In Malaysia Grip
28/08/2006 20:24

By Hasan Jafri
Of DOW JONES NEWSWIRES

KUALA LUMPUR (Dow Jones)--Singapore's Parkway Holdings Ltd. (P27.SG) will sell its direct stake in Pantai Holdings Bhd. (8036.KU) to a Malaysian state-owned investment company for MYR394.9 million (US$107 million), after Malaysian lawmakers demanded that the listed healthcare company remain in local hands.

Parkway will sell its controlling 30.68% stake in Pantai to Khazanah Nasional Bhd. for MYR2.65 per share, a 5.7% premium to Pantai's last traded price, the companies said Monday.

As part of the deal, Parkway will take a 49% stake in a joint venture company with Khazanah that will own all Pantai shares. Khazanah also said Pantai Irama Ventures Sdn. Bhd., the joint venture company, has bought 6.6% in Pantai and is making a general offer to buy its remaining shares.

The deal allows Khazanah to increase its investments in healthcare after it last year bought a stake in Apollo Hospitals, India's largest private healthcare provider. Parkway will continue to manage the Pantai hospitals.

"Khazanah has identified the healthcare sector as a strategic sector for us to invest in regionally," Khazanah Managing Director Azman Mokhtar said in a statement.

The compromise underscores how a commercial transaction in Malaysia can quickly become a political firecracker. It also comes at a time when Prime Minister Abdullah Ahmad Badawi, keen to mend fences with Singapore, is under fire from his predecessor Mahathir Mohamad for being too soft on Malaysia's southern neighbor.

"Parkway is swapping a direct stake for an indirect stake in Pantai," said a foreign fund manager who asked not to be named. "They will still get to manage Pantai, but it doesn't say much about investor confidence in Malaysia."

Parkway last November became the controlling shareholder in Pantai when it bought the stake from a group of local businessmen for MYR311.6 million. The deal gave the private healthcare operator access to one of Malaysia's most profitable private healthcare providers with seven hospitals and several lucrative, long-term government concessions.

But members of the ruling United Malays National Organization earlier this year said the deal - although it had been approved by regulatory authorities - violated Malaysia's race quota requirements, which stipulate that a company must be 30% owned by majority ethnic Malays.

Furthermore, Pantai has a lucrative 15-year government concession to manage and supervise mandatory medical checkups for foreign workers, to which the race quota law also applies, lawmakers argued.

-By Hasan Jafri, Dow Jones Newswires; 603-2692-5254; hasan.jafri@dowjones.com

(END) Dow Jones Newswires
August 28, 2006 08:24 ET (12:24 GMT)