Japan’s MUFG buying 20% of Philippines' Security Bank for US$774mil

MANILA: Japan’s biggest bank Mitsubishi UFJ Financial Group is buying a fifth of mid-sized Philippine lender Security Bank Corp for US$774mil, in what will be the biggest foreign financial sector equity investment in the Southeast Asian nation.

Mitsubishi UFJ’s investment, being made through its core banking unit, Bank of Tokyo-Mitsubishi UFJ Ltd (BTMU), is the latest in a string of cross-border tie-ups that Japanese financial firms are seeking to tap fast-growing Asian markets as domestic growth remains weak.