GE to buy 25.4 pct of Thailand's Bank of Ayudhya http://today.reuters.com/news/articleinvesting.aspx?type=mergersNews&storyID=2006-08-28T122424Z_01_WEN4579_RTRIDST_0_FINANCIAL-BANKOFAYUDHYA-GE-URGENT.XML
Mon Aug 28, 2006
NEW YORK, Aug 28 (Reuters) - General Electric Co. (GE.N: Quote, Profile, Research) on Monday said its consumer finance unit, GE Money, agreed to acquire a 25.4 percent stake in Thailand's Bank of Ayudhya Ltd. (BAY.BK: Quote, Profile, Research) for $600 million, giving the U.S. conglomerate a foothold in Thailand's retail banking business.
GE, which said the transaction is subject to shareholder approvals, said Bank of Ayudhya is Thailand's sixth-biggest bank with more than $10 billion in net earning assets and 500 branches.
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