Yoma drops 21% amid heavy trading; company denies report that chairman in Myanmar junta custody

SHARES of Yoma Strategic fell as much as 21.5 per cent on Wednesday (Jul 10) morning, following the group’s clarification that no charges have been filed against its executive chairman Serge Pun.

The counter was down S$0.03 to S$0.113, with 30.9 million shares having changed hands as at 9.22 am. The last time it closed near this level was June.

By 11.08 am, Yoma was the most actively traded counter by volume. Its shares were trading down 14.6 per cent or S$0.021 at S$0.123. No married deals were recorded in early trade, ShareInvestor data showed.

Before the market opened, Yoma issued a clarification on an article by news agency, Myanmar-Now, which reported that Pun had been held in junta custody for more than a month over alleged violations of banking regulations.

In the article published on Tuesday, the news agency said that Pun was summoned to Naypyitaw in early June and has since been detained along with eight senior employees of Yoma Bank and Yoma Land.

It also cited an anonymous source, who “confirmed that the 71-year-old tycoon is being held under house arrest as he faces unspecified charges”.

According to a Bloomberg report on Jul 10, Myanmar’s central bank had earlier this month announced that action would be taken against seven banks including Yoma Bank, for granting housing loans that exceeded central bank limits as part of efforts “to stabilise the local economy”. The lenders will be fined, and certain central bank officials disciplined for their lax supervision, the report said.

Yoma has since clarified that Pun is in Naypyitaw and has been meeting and cooperating with relevant authorities, including the Central Bank of Myanmar, on matters relating to the banking business.

The group noted that being a “responsible” business organisation in Myanmar, it engages with relevant government ministries and regulators from time to time to conduct its activities.

It also said its businesses and operations are not affected by Kasikornbank’s purported “tentative” actions to terminate banking services. “These actions reference the Myanmar banking sector in which the group is not involved.”

Yoma Bank is one of Myanmar’s largest private lenders, the Bloomberg report said. It counts Greenwood Capital, an affiliate of Singapore sovereign wealth fund GIC, and Norway’s Norfund as shareholders, according to the bank’s website. GIC and Norfund are reported to have bought about 30 per cent of the business for 130 billion kyat (then S$121.3 million) in 2020.

Another shareholder, the World Bank Group’s private-sector arm, divested its stake in Yoma Bank in 2022, following sanctions targeted at Myanmar’s military coup leaders.

GIC declined to comment in response to queries from Bloomberg.

Shares of Yoma Strategic closed down 4 per cent or S$0.006 at S$0.144 on Tuesday.