BW20030603002070  20030603T140024Z UTC


( BW)(SUMITOMO-MITSUI-BNKG)(SBK) Statement re: The Bank of Kansai to Acquire The Kansai Sawayaka Bank's Common Stock

    Business Editors
    UK REGULATORY NEWS

    TOKYO--(BUSINESS WIRE)--June 3, 2003--


The Bank of Kansai to Acquire The Kansai Sawayaka Bank's Common Stock

Tokyo, June 3, 2003 --- Sumitomo Mitsui Financial Group, Inc. ("SMFG")
announced today that The Bank of Kansai, Ltd., its consolidated
subsidiary, has resolved at today's meeting of the Board of Directors
to acquire 80% of the outstanding common shares of The Kansai Sawayaka
Bank, Limited (see the attached material), subject to the approval of
the authorities. The acquisition will make The Kansai Sawayaka Bank a
consolidated subsidiary of SMFG.

SMFG's earnings estimates, which were announced on May 26, 2003, will
not be revised.

Note: SMFG does not have capital, personnel or business relationship
      with The Kansai Sawayaka Bank Limited or Nippon Investment
      Partners Limited Partnership from whom The Bank of Kansai will
      acquire the shares.





                                        Acquisition of The Kansai Sawayaka Bank's Common Stock

Tokyo, June 3, 2003 --- The Bank of Kansai, Ltd. announced today that
the Board of Directors has resolved to acquire 80% of the outstanding
common shares of The Kansai Sawayaka Bank, Limited, subject to the
approval of the authorities.

1.       Outline of The Kansai Sawayaka Bank

     --------------------------- -------------------------------------------------------------------------
     Corporate name              The Kansai Sawayaka Bank, Limited
     --------------------------- -------------------------------------------------------------------------
     --------------------------- -------------------------------------------------------------------------
     Address                     2-37, Tosabori 1-chome, Nishi-ku, Osaka
     --------------------------- -------------------------------------------------------------------------
     --------------------------- -------------------------------------------------------------------------
     Representative              Shuichi Takahashi
     --------------------------- -------------------------------------------------------------------------
     --------------------------- -------------------------------------------------------------------------
     Date of establishment       September 26, 2000
     --------------------------- -------------------------------------------------------------------------
     --------------------------- -------------------------------------------------------------------------
     Capital stock               32,083 million yen
     --------------------------- -------------------------------------------------------------------------
     --------------------------- ----------------------- --------------------- --------- -----------------
     Main shareholders                    Name                 Address         No. of     As % of total
                                                                                shares     outstanding
                                                                                              shares
                                 ----------------------- --------------------- --------- -----------------
          ---------------------- ----------------------- --------------------- --------- -----------------
          Common stock           Nippon Investment       Delaware, U.S.A.      480,000          99.6%
                                 Partners Limited
                                 Partnership
          ---------------------- ----------------------- --------------------- --------- -----------------
          ---------------------- ----------------------- --------------------- --------- -----------------
          Preferred stock        Resolution and          46-1, Honmachi         40,000        100.0%
                                 Collection Corp.        2-chome, Nakano-ku,
                                                         Tokyo
     ---- ---------------------- ----------------------- --------------------- --------- -----------------
     --------------------------- -------------------------------------------------------------------------
     Business                    Banking
     --------------------------- -------------------------------------------------------------------------
     --------------------------- ---------- --------------------------------------------------------------
     Relationship with           Capital    None
     The Bank of Kansai
     --------------------------- ---------- --------------------------------------------------------------
     --------------------------- ---------- --------------------------------------------------------------
                                 Personnel  None
     --------------------------- ---------- --------------------------------------------------------------
     --------------------------- ---------- --------------------------------------------------------------
                                 Business   None
     --------------------------- ---------- --------------------------------------------------------------
     --------------------------- -------------------------------------------------------------------------
     No. of employees            812
     --------------------------- -------------------------------------------------------------------------
     --------------------------- ------------------------------------ ------------------------------------
     Earnings & Financial                      FY2001                               FY2002
     Situation                           (ended March 2002)                   (ended March 2003)
                                 ------------------------------------ ------------------------------------
          ---------------------- ------------------------------------ ------------------------------------
          Operating income           27,649 million yen ( 84.9%)          27,579 million yen ( 84.7%)
          ---------------------- ------------------------------------ ------------------------------------
          ---------------------- ------------------------------------ ------------------------------------
          Operating profit            9,964 million yen (211.5%)          10,701 million yen (227.2%)
          ---------------------- ------------------------------------ ------------------------------------
          ---------------------- ------------------------------------ ------------------------------------
          Net income                  5,358 million yen (255.1%)           5,826 million yen (277.4%)
          ---------------------- ------------------------------------ ------------------------------------
          ---------------------- ------------------------------------ ------------------------------------
          Total assets              817,360 million yen ( 63.7%)         778,280 million yen ( 60.7%)
          ---------------------- ------------------------------------ ------------------------------------
          ---------------------- ------------------------------------ ------------------------------------
          Stockholders' equity       37,843 million yen ( 86.9%)          43,539 million yen ( 99.9%)
          ---------------------- ------------------------------------ ------------------------------------
                                 -------------------------------------------------------------------------
                                 ( ): As % of The Bank of Kansai's FY2002 figures
     --------------------------- -------------------------------------------------------------------------
Note: Unless otherwise stipulated by law, preferred stock carries no voting rights at stockholders meetings.

2.       Number of outstanding common shares to be purchased by The Bank of Kansai

    (a) No. of shares held before acquisition:       None

    (b) No. of shares to be acquired:   384,000 shares (80% of outstanding common
                                        shares); acquisition price 38.4 billion yen

    (c) No. of shares held after acquisition:        384,000 shares (80% of outstanding common
                                        shares)

1.



3.       Outline of the company selling the shares

     --------------------------- -------------------------------------------------------------------------
     Corporate name              Nippon Investment Partners Limited Partnership
     --------------------------- -------------------------------------------------------------------------
     --------------------------- -------------------------------------------------------------------------
     Address                     Delaware, U.S.A.
     --------------------------- -------------------------------------------------------------------------
     --------------------------- -------------------------------------------------------------------------
     Representative              Wilbur L. Ross, Jr.
                                 Chairman and Managing Member of Nippon Sawayaka Associates LLC, which
                                 is the sole General Partner of Nippon Investment Partners Limited
                                 Partnership
     --------------------------- -------------------------------------------------------------------------
     --------------------------- -------------------------------------------------------------------------
     Date of establishment       July 2000
     --------------------------- -------------------------------------------------------------------------
     --------------------------- ------------- -----------------------------------------------------------
     Relationship with           Capital       None
     The Bank of Kansai
     --------------------------- ------------- -----------------------------------------------------------
     --------------------------- ------------- -----------------------------------------------------------
                                 Personnel     None
     --------------------------- ------------- -----------------------------------------------------------
     --------------------------- ------------- -----------------------------------------------------------
                                 Business      None
     --------------------------- ------------- -----------------------------------------------------------

4.       Acquisition method

    Sale and purchase of shares

5.       Acquisition reasons

    The Bank of Kansai and The Kansai Sawayaka Bank are scheduled to
    merge on February 1, 2004, subject to the approval of their
    shareholders and the authorities. To facilitate the integration of
    the two banks at the management level, The Bank of Kansai will
    purchase 80% of the outstanding common shares of The Kansai
    Sawayaka Bank prior to their merger.

6.       Acquisition schedule

    June 3, 2003 (Tuesday):                 Resolution of the Board of Directors
                  Signing of Share Transfer Agreement

    July 1, 2003 (Wednesday):       Transfer of shares (slated)

    February 1, 2004 (Sunday):      Merger (slated)

7.       Futures earnings impact

    The Bank of Kansai will announce the consolidated and
    nonconsolidated income projections for FY2003 as soon as the
    figures have been estimated.

    The two bank's FY2002 earnings results, which were announced on
May 26, 2003, are as follows:
                                                                                         (Millions of yen)
    ---------------------------- ----------------------- --------------------------- ---------------------
                                     Bank of Kansai         Kansai Sawayaka Bank            Total
    ---------------------------- ----------------------- --------------------------- ---------------------
    ---------------------------- ----------------------- --------------------------- ---------------------
    Operating income                    33,500                     28,040                   61,540
    ---------------------------- ----------------------- --------------------------- ---------------------
    ---------------------------- ----------------------- --------------------------- ---------------------
    Operating profit                        5,500                    11,460                   16,960
    ---------------------------- ----------------------- --------------------------- ---------------------
    ---------------------------- ----------------------- --------------------------- ---------------------
    Net income                              2,300                     6,430                    8,730
    ---------------------------- ----------------------- --------------------------- ---------------------

    ---------------------------- ----------------------- --------------------------- ---------------------
    Banking profit                         12,000                     3,650                  15,650
                                 ----------------------- --------------------------- ---------------------
         ----------------------- ----------------------- --------------------------- ---------------------
         Core banking profit               12,000                     3,650                  15,650
    ---- ----------------------- ----------------------- --------------------------- ---------------------



   Short Name: Sumitomo Mitsui Bnkg.
   Category Code: STR
   Sequence Number: 00005411
   Time of Receipt (offset from UTC): 20030603T145549+0100

    --30--ne/uk*

    CONTACT: Sumitomo Mitsui Bnkg

    KEYWORD: UNITED KINGDOM JAPAN INTERNATIONAL EUROPE ASIA PACIFIC
    INDUSTRY KEYWORD: BANKING
    SOURCE: Sumitomo Mitsui Bnkg

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