GREATER CHINA
* Chinese private equity and venture capital firm Morningside Venture Capital secured more than US$1 billion in capital for its U.S.-dollar fund, China Money Network reported, citing the investor's announcement. The company will continue using the capital to finance local early-stage technology startups.
* Liang Yutang resigned as vice chairman and executive director of China Minsheng Banking Corp. Ltd., effective Oct. 12. Liang stepped down upon reaching the age of retirement.
* People's Bank of China Governor Yi Gang said he sees "plenty of room" for adjustment in interest rates and the reserve requirement ratio amid trade tensions with the U.S., Reuters reported. The central bank is also weighing a range of risks in its currency policy, including a worst-case scenario, Yi told Bloomberg News. However, Yi said the currency is at a "reasonable and equilibrium level."
JAPAN AND KOREA
* Bank of Japan Governor Haruhiko Kuroda said the target interest rate may change when the 2% inflation target "is met or is close to be met," which could also mean that the central bank is ready to end its massive monetary stimulus, Bloomberg News reported.
* South Korea's Financial Supervisory Service is set to release the results of an ongoing probe into Goldman Sachs International and its Seoul branch for its failure to settle short selling transactions, The Korea Times reported, citing an official. The FSS said Goldman Sachs placed a short selling order through its Seoul branch May 30 but failed to settle about 1.38 million shares worth about 6 billion won in time.
* Korea Development Bank said it issued kangaroo bonds worth A$4 billion at its record-low additional interest rate equal to 0.98% above the bank bill swap rate, The Financial News reported.
ASEAN
* Standard Chartered PLC CEO William Winters said the U.K.-based lender is "actively working" on options for its shareholding in Indonesia-based PT Bank Permata Tbk, Reuters reported. StanChart and Indonesian conglomerate PT Astra International Tbk each own 44.56% of Bank Permata.
* Indonesian state lender PT Bank Tabungan Negara (Persero) Tbk is postponing the spin-off of its Shariah unit at least until 2020, Bisnis Indonesia reported, citing Mahelan Prabantarikso, director of strategy, compliance and risk. The lender has until 2023 to spin off the unit as mandated by central bank guidelines.
* The Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas and the Czech National Bank entered into a memorandum of understanding on cooperation. The MOU covers information exchange and cooperation on regulatory systems, among other things, according to a statement from the Philippine central bank.
* Thailand's Viriyah Insurance PCL is aiming for 5% growth with premium income reaching 39.5 billion baht in 2019, Post Today reported. The insurer is looking to generate premiums of 37.6 billion baht in 2018.
SOUTH ASIA
* U.S.-based investment firm KKR & Co.'s two Indian credit units could spend up to 20 billion rupees to buy portfolios from Indian nonbanking finance companies, Bloomberg News reported, citing Sanjay Nayar, CEO of KKR India. KKR also seeks acquisitions of Indian nonbank lenders and their employee teams, according to people with knowledge of the matter.
* U.S. private equity giant TPG Capital Management LP is nearing a deal to acquire a 30% stake in India-based nonbanking finance company Ess Kay Fincorp Ltd., The Economic Times reported, citing unnamed sources. TPG offered to buy the stake for 3.50 billion rupees, topping other bidders.
* India-based Bandhan Bank Ltd. said the Securities and Exchange Board of India exempted it from a restriction on promoters divesting shares for one year after listing. This comes after the Reserve Bank of India barred the lender from opening new branches without prior approval and froze CEO Chandra Shekhar Ghosh's remuneration for failing to lower the stake of its nonoperative financial holding company to 40%.
* SBM Bank (Mauritius) Ltd.'s Indian unit said it retrieved about 90% of the approximately 1.90 billion rupees stolen in a cyberattack Oct. 2, Indo-Asian News Service reported. A spokesperson said the bank lost the amount through fraudulent Society for Worldwide Interbank Financial Telecommunication, or SWIFT, payments.
AUSTRALIA AND NEW ZEALAND
* Commonwealth Bank of Australia named Alan Docherty its CFO. Docherty has been acting CFO of the bank since May.
* Australia & New Zealand Banking Group Ltd. now seeks to expand in Asia after a few years of divesting from its consumer and commercial businesses in the region, The Australian reported, citing Mark Whelan, head of institutional banking at ANZ. The bank will focus on customers with significant business and trade flows in the region, Whelan said.
* Australia-based Monash Absolute Investment Co. Ltd. and Sandon Capital Investments Ltd. are set to meet as early as Oct. 15 over Sandon Capital's merger proposal, The Australian Financial Review reported. Sandon Capital on Oct. 12 made the proposal public, accusing Monash's board of failing to engage. Meanwhile, Monash raised "a number of serious concerns" about the proposal, including Sandon Capital's overestimation of the degree of cost savings to the proposal and the two companies' different investment approaches.
* The Australian Securities and Investments Commission said it is investigating the failure of institutions in the country's financial advice sector to provide customers with fee disclosure statements and renewal notices after receiving a number of breach reports from licensees. The regulator will release the findings of its probe in 2019.
R Sio, Sally Wang, Sarun Saelee, Cathy Hwang, Emi White and Aditya Suharmoko contributed to this report.
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