said March 29 that the board of CTBC Bank Co. Ltd. approved to acquire a 35.6% stake in Thailand'sLH Financial GroupPCL for 16.60 billion baht (US$469.5 million).

Underthe plan, CTBC Bank will subscribe to 7.545 billion newly issued shares of LHFinancial Group at 2.2 baht each. The transaction is subject to regulatory approvals.

Thetransaction is expected to increase CTBC Bank's overseas revenues and expandits customer coverage and overseas business.

Thememorandum of understanding between the two parties will be valid from March 29to Dec. 28, but may be extended.

As of March 28, US$1 wasequivalent to 35.36 Thai baht.