UPDATE 1-Kookmin Bank to buy Kazakh bank stake for $623 mln

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SEOUL, Mar 17 (Reuters) - South Korea's Kookmin Bank 060000.KS said on Monday it would buy a 30 percent stake in mid-size Kazakh bank CenterCredit CCBN.KZ for $623 million and raise its holding to more than half over the next few years.

The deal would be Kookmin's first major cross-border acquisition after a consortium including Kookmin bought a controlling stake in Indonesia's sixth-largest lender, PT Bank Internasional Indonesia Tbk (BNII.JK) in 2003.

It would also provide Kookmin 060000.KS (KB.N), the country's top retail lender, a foothold in the Commonwealth of Independent States as it tries to expand overseas and reduce its reliance on interest income at home.

"Through the stake purchase, we will enter the CIS region and will secure future growth momentum," Kookmin said in a filing with the Korea Exchange.

"After wrapping up the transaction, we will expand our shareholding to more than 50.1 percent within 30 months."

The shares would be bought on the Kazak stock exchange, but Kookmin did not reveal a timeframe for the completion of the on-the-market transaction.

A signing ceremony is scheduled for Tuesday in Kazakhstan, Kookmin spokesman Choi In-seok said by telephone.

An industry source says Kookmin is being advised by a boutique firm in Kazakhstan on the stake purchase.

Other South Korean banks, including Shinhan Financial Group (055550.KS) and Hana Financial Group (086790.KS), have been opening overseas units in Asia, looking for new opportunities as they face stalled lending growth and stiff competition at home.

Separately, Kookmin said last week it could buy shares in Bank Internasional Indonesia (BII) from Singapore fund Temasek, which would give it a controlling stake in the Indonesian lender.

Temasek [TEM.UL], which has stakes in two Indonesian banks, is trying to sell its 42 percent share in BII to comply with a new central bank rule that prevents foreign investors from owning more than one bank in Southeast Asia's biggest economy. ($1=997.1 Won)

(Reporting by Kim Yeon-hee; Editing by Kim Coghill)