Reuters
Shares of Malaysia’s Alliance Financial Group Bhd fell after its unit Alliance Bank, one of the country’s smallest lenders, reportedly put several top executives on forced leave pending an internal probe.
Several top managers were told to go on leave just before Christmas as the bank investigated a share purchase transaction and a deal involving the sale and leaseback of several multi-storey commercial buildings, the New Straits Times reported.
A spokeswoman for Alliance Bank Malaysia told Reuters a statement will be issued today.
The stock fell 6.7 per cent to RM2.52 at the 12.30 pm break, its biggest drop since October 28, 2008.
“We expect that the financial impact, if any, would be minimal and one-off,” said Kenanga Investment Bank in a note published today.
Singapore’s state investor Temasek Holdings owns 29 per cent of Alliance Financial via Vertical Theme Sdn Bhd, and Malaysia’s largest pension fund, the Employees Provident Fund, owns 13.9 per cent, according to Thomson Reuters data.
http://www.btimes.com.my/Current_News/BTIMES/articles/20100105112515/Article/index_html