Taiwan Yuanta says no plans to sell down Kim Eng stake

SINGAPORE, Feb 25 (Reuters) - Yuanta Securities, Taiwan's largest stockbroker, will not sell any of its 29 percent stake in Singapore's Kim Eng (KEHS.SI: Quote, Profile, Research, Stock Buzz) to Japan's Mitsubishi UFJ Securities.(8306.T: Quote, Profile, Research, Stock Buzz), its president Alex Lee said on Monday.

Yuanta Securities, the stockbroking arm of Taiwan's Yuanta Financial Holdings (2885.TW: Quote, Profile, Research, Stock Buzz), also said it planned to grow its China business by increasing staff at its Hong Kong office from 50 to around 200 by the end of the year.

"Yuanta's holdings in Kim Eng will remain unchanged," Lee said at a media briefing in Singapore to launch several warrant products on the Singapore Exchange (SGXL.SI: Quote, Profile, Research, Stock Buzz).

Mitsubishi UFJ on Friday offered to buy 11 percent of Kim Eng, a Singapore-listed regional stockbroker, from existing shareholders in a bid that could cost Japan's largest bank S$166 million ($118.1 million). [ID:nSIN219599]

The bid by Mitsubishi UFJ comes one day after the Japanese and Singapore companies agreed to set up an asset management joint venture. [ID:nSIN185019]

Mitsubishi UFJ will distribute no less than S$1 billion worth of funds managed by the joint venture to Japanese investors within the next two years.

The Taiwanese firm marked its foray into the Singapore market on Monday by launching call warrants on three Taiwanese electronics firms: Hon Hai Precision Industry (2317.TW: Quote, Profile, Research, Stock Buzz), Asustek Computer (2357.TW: Quote, Profile, Research, Stock Buzz) and High Tech Computer Corp (2498.TW: Quote, Profile, Research, Stock Buzz).

Yuanta Securities plans to launch about 100 warrants in Singapore this year, senior vice president Timothy Lin said. (Reporting by Kevin Lim; editing by Louise Heavens)