Union opposes sale of SCIB stake

At least 30 members of the labour union at Siam City Bank Plc (SCIB) submitted a letter to the chairman of the parliament’s financial and fiscal and committee, Surapong Towichakchaikul, expressing opposition to the plan to sell the bank's shares to foreign financial institutions.

The SCIB’s shares to be offered for sale are now held by the state-owned Financial Institutions Development Fund (FIDF).

Mr Surapong said the sale of SCIB share to foreign investors by the Ministry of Finance could affect the country’s financial system and the bank’s employees.

“the finance minister, management of SCIB and representatives of the bank’s labour union will be invited to provide information on the matter to the parliamentary committee’s meeting next week,” Mr Surapong said.

The FIDF board met on Monday to discuss the sale of its stake in the country's seventh-biggest commercial bank.

SCIB has said four or five investors were interested. They include Thanachart Capital's TCAP.BK banking unit and TBANK, which is 49 per cent owned by Canada's Bank of Nova Scotia (BNS.TO).