South Korean consumer finance company APRO Finacial is buying a 40% stake in Indonesian microlender Bank Andara. APRO will subscribe to 202,923 new shares issued by Bank Andara for an undisclosed sum. The acquisition will mark APRO’s entrance into Indonesia’s growing microfinance market. Andara said it is selling shares to increase the company’s capital, and aims to grow its wholesale business and seek mergers and acquisitions of its own. The acquisition is scheduled to be completed in February 2016. Following the deal, APRO will become Andara’s largest shareholder. Current shareholders include Mercy Corps, a U.S.-based aid agency, and International Finance Corporation, a part of the World Bank, which with several other parties bought the former commercial lender in 2009 and turned it into a microfinance bank. APRO’s core business is consumer finance, and is known in South Korea for its ‘Rush and Cash’ brand.
