싱가폴 국부펀드의 하나인 테마섹 홀딩스가 미국 은행 투자에서 최대 46억불 (약 5조 8천억원)의 거대한 손실을 보았다는 뉴스가 싱가폴 언론과 외신에서 떠들썩하게 다루어지고 있습니다. 

이번 손실은 작년에 미국의 투자 은행인 메릴린치에 거액을 투자 하였으나 곧이어 투자처인 메릴린치가 BoA(Bank of America)와 합병된 후 주가 하락이 계속되자 더 이상의 손실을 방지하기 위해 보유 지분을 매각한 것이라고 합니다. 

그동안 국가가 주도하는 모범적인 사례로 칭찬을 한몸에 받아왔던 싱가폴의 국부펀드가 이 어려움을 어떻게 벗어날지 지켜볼 일입니다. 

테마섹, BOA 지분 전량 처분..46억달러 손실 싱가포르의 국부펀드인 테마섹 홀딩스가 지난3월 31일 뱅크오브아메리카(BOA)의 지분 3.8%를 전량 매각한 것으로 나타났다. 

테마섹 홀딩스는 14일 미 증권거래위원회(SEC)에 제출한 분기 보고서에서 이같이밝혔으며 테마섹 대변인도 이를 확인했다. 테마섹 홀딩스는 지난해 12월 메릴린치 주식 2억1천970만주를 보유하고 있다고 밝혔으며 

이는 올해 초 BOA와 메릴린치가 합병되면서 BOA 주식으로 전환됐다. 당시 테마섹은 메릴린치 1주당 BOA주식 0.8595주로 계산, 모두 1억8천900만주를 보유하게 됐다. 

정통한 소식통에 따르면 테마섹은 주당 평균 7달러에 BOA 주식을 처분해 모두 13억달러를 확보, 46억달러의 손실을 봤을 것으로 추정된다. 테마섹은 그동안 메릴린치에 모두 59억달러를 투자해 지분 14%를 사들인 바 있다. 

한 관계자는 테마섹이 BOA 주주가 되고자 한 적이 없으며 단기 및 중기적으로 BOA에서 성장 가능성을 찾지도 못했다고 말했다. 

또다른 관계자는 "테마섹이 1.4분기 고점과 저점 중간 지점에서 BOA 주식을 팔았다"면서 "BOA 주식을 계속 쥐고 있을 이득이 없었다"고 지적했다. 그는 "미국 정부의 스트레스 테스트 결과와 애널리스트들의 분석으로 볼 때 BOA전망은 밝지 않다"고 덧붙였다. [출처: 연합뉴스] 

Temasek sells BoA stake Move in line with fund's new strategy, but it may have lost at least US$2.3b SINGAPORE'S state-owned investment vehicle Temasek Holdings sold all its Bank of America (BoA) shares in the first three months of this year, resulting in estimated losses of between US$2.3 billion (S$3.4 billion) and US$4.6 billion. Analysts and fund managers said the move was in line with Temasek's tweaking of its long-term investment strategy to focus more on Asia and emerging markets such as Brazil and Russia. It will, in turn, reduce emphasis on developed countries such as the United States and Europe. A filing with the US Securities and Exchange Commission revealed that Temasek no longer held BoA or Merrill Lynch shares as of March 31. A Temasek spokesman said yesterday: 'We have divested our shares in Bank of America.' Temasek declined to reveal the average price it got for its 188.8 million shares or why or exactly when it sold, but preliminary calculations put the potential loss from at least US$2.3 billion to as much as US$4.6 billion. The Straits Times understands the sale took place via a series of transactions made in the first quarter of this year. Temasek's involvement in BoA stemmed from its US$5.1 billion investment in Merrill Lynch. It had held a 13.7 per cent stake in the investment bank, making it the largest shareholder. Temasek's entire stake was subsequently converted into BoA shares in January following the bank's completion of the acquisition of Merrill Lynch. This gave the investment company about a 3 per cent stake in BoA, or a holding of 188.8 million shares. Data from Thomson Reuters showed that the lowest traded price for BoA shares in the first three months was US$2.53 on Feb 20, with the highest at US$14.81 on Jan 6. This means Temasek would have bagged as little as US$500 million to as much as US$2.8 billion for selling its 188.8 million shares, giving it estimated losses of between US$2.3 billion and US$4.6 billion. It would also have missed out on a rally at the start of the second quarter, which saw BoA shares double in value from US$7 to US$14 apiece. Temasek's portfolio has been rocked by the fallout from the global market slump in the wake of the US sub-prime crisis. Its net portfolio value dropped from $185 billion to $127 billion from March 31 to Nov 30 last year, a fall of 31 per cent. Sources told The Straits Times that Temasek's exit was not surprising, given that BoA had been in the news for the wrong reasons. The Wall Street Journal reported yesterday that US officials urged the bank to revamp its board and bring in directors with more banking experience. The recent stress test to gauge the financial health of 19 key US banks also showed that BoA needed to raise the most capital as a buffer in the event of a weaker economy. Analysts and fund managers told The Straits Times that Temasek's sale could have been triggered by the continued uncertainty over the outlook of US financial stocks. Mr Christoffer Moltke-Leth, head of Asia sales trading at Saxo Capital Markets Singapore, called Temasek's move a 'logical step' as the earnings outlook for US banks is 'pretty grim', and these stocks could sink further than their March lows in the second half of this year. 'There is not going to be much demand for loans there, and this may last for a prolonged period,' he said. Mr Hugh Young, chief executive of the Asia-Pacific arm of Aberdeen Asset Management, said: 'There is still considerable risk with the US financial stocks; I don't think we are out of the woods yet.' CIMB-GK Research chief executive Song Seng Wun said one likely reason for Temasek's sale could be a decision to 'consolidate its position and not to be overly exposed to US financial stocks'. He cautioned that the BoA is a US-centric business and may carry higher risks of bad debts and provisions due to the recession hitting businesses there. He added that the move could also be a reflection of Temasek's strategy refinement to look more towards Asia. Temasek's portfolio mix aims for about 10 per cent in Latin America, Russia and Africa, and about 20 per cent in Organisation for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD) countries, or the developed nations. This leaves 30 per cent for Singapore investments, and the remaining 40 per cent for the rest of Asia. It refines an earlier strategy in which Temasek said it would park about one-third of its assets in Singapore, one-third in Asia, excluding Japan, and the rest in OECD countries. [출처: The Straits Times]