HSBC says it scraps bid to buy S Korean bank

Banking giant HSBC announced Friday it has scrapped a six billion dollar deal to buy a major South Korean bank after the international credit crisis cut asset values worldwide.
HSBC said in a statement it had terminated the deal to buy a 51 percent stake in Korea Exchange Bank (KEB) from US buyout fund Lone Star, "taking into account all relevant factors including current asset values in world financial markets."
It said discussions with Lone Star "have not led to agreement on how the transaction might proceed on a basis acceptable to HSBC," apparently indicating differences over pricing.
The transaction had also been dogged by legal disputes over Lone Star's 2003 purchase of KEB. South Korea's watchdog Financial Services Commission (FSC) had not yet given approval for the latest deal.