JAKARTA. Private investment firm PT Saratoga Investama Sedaya (SRTG) was ready to meet a new regulation on foreign-denominated loans and planned set aside US$150 million for investment in 2015, its top executives said. Jerry Ngo, Saratoga’s finance director, said the company had taken several steps to cope with the regulation, which was introduced by Bank Indonesia (BI) in October. “We actually decided to take the steps before BI introduced the regulation because we were concerned about our FX [foreign exchange] loan situation. So when the BI regulation was announced, to be honest, we felt very lucky,” he said on Monday after the company held its annual public expose. Part of the steps included an adjustment to the maturity period of its long-term FX loans, according to Ngo. Prior to the adjustment, the company would have been required to pay off $16 million in loans in 2015 and even a larger sum the following year, which would have amounted to $219 million. “What we did was chop all of the loans into smaller pieces across several years. Long-term loan have now become short-term ones. We have until 2020 to repay our debts, with payment amounts ranging between $10 million and $92 million per year,” he said. The maturity period adjustment has left Saratoga with $10 million in loans due next year, equal to 4.3 percent of its total FX loans. “We have converted some of the loans into rupiah as well, supported by our recent MTN [medium term note],” he said. The 4.3 percent ratio will be lower than the benchmark set by the central bank. BI — in its effort to reduce risks toward financial stability that stem from rising external debts — requires non-banking corporations to hedge a minimum 20 percent of their short-term FX loans in 2015. The ratio will then rise to 25 percent a year later. Besides setting the minimum hedging ratio, BI also sets a liquidity ratio measurement, which requires corporations to have FX assets that are equal to at least 50 percent of its FX liabilities. The liquidity ratio is set higher at 70 percent for 2016. According to Ngo, Saratoga is confident that it will meet the liquidity ratio measurement as well, citing the company’s liquid assets in the form of shares that are spread among its investee firms. As an investment firm, Saratoga now controls stake in several public and private companies, such as coal miner Adaro Energy (ADRO), tower company Tower Bersama Infrastructure (TBIG), plantation firm Provident Agro (PALM) and power producer Medco Power Indonesia. Meanwhile, Saratoga president director Sandiaga Uno said that the company would set aside $100 to $150 million of its internal funds for investment purposes in 2015. Sandiaga said that it still would look for investment opportunities in the segments it operates in now, namely resources, infrastructure and consumer. “We are thinking of venturing into the fast food and beverage sector, but have not found the right brand to invest in,” he said. (Tassia Sipahutar)
Saratoga ready to meet FX loan regulation
JAKARTA. Private investment firm PT Saratoga Investama Sedaya (SRTG) was ready to meet a new regulation on foreign-denominated loans and planned set aside US$150 million for investment in 2015, its top executives said. Jerry Ngo, Saratoga’s finance director, said the company had taken several steps to cope with the regulation, which was introduced by Bank Indonesia (BI) in October. “We actually decided to take the steps before BI introduced the regulation because we were concerned about our FX [foreign exchange] loan situation. So when the BI regulation was announced, to be honest, we felt very lucky,” he said on Monday after the company held its annual public expose. Part of the steps included an adjustment to the maturity period of its long-term FX loans, according to Ngo. Prior to the adjustment, the company would have been required to pay off $16 million in loans in 2015 and even a larger sum the following year, which would have amounted to $219 million. “What we did was chop all of the loans into smaller pieces across several years. Long-term loan have now become short-term ones. We have until 2020 to repay our debts, with payment amounts ranging between $10 million and $92 million per year,” he said. The maturity period adjustment has left Saratoga with $10 million in loans due next year, equal to 4.3 percent of its total FX loans. “We have converted some of the loans into rupiah as well, supported by our recent MTN [medium term note],” he said. The 4.3 percent ratio will be lower than the benchmark set by the central bank. BI — in its effort to reduce risks toward financial stability that stem from rising external debts — requires non-banking corporations to hedge a minimum 20 percent of their short-term FX loans in 2015. The ratio will then rise to 25 percent a year later. Besides setting the minimum hedging ratio, BI also sets a liquidity ratio measurement, which requires corporations to have FX assets that are equal to at least 50 percent of its FX liabilities. The liquidity ratio is set higher at 70 percent for 2016. According to Ngo, Saratoga is confident that it will meet the liquidity ratio measurement as well, citing the company’s liquid assets in the form of shares that are spread among its investee firms. As an investment firm, Saratoga now controls stake in several public and private companies, such as coal miner Adaro Energy (ADRO), tower company Tower Bersama Infrastructure (TBIG), plantation firm Provident Agro (PALM) and power producer Medco Power Indonesia. Meanwhile, Saratoga president director Sandiaga Uno said that the company would set aside $100 to $150 million of its internal funds for investment purposes in 2015. Sandiaga said that it still would look for investment opportunities in the segments it operates in now, namely resources, infrastructure and consumer. “We are thinking of venturing into the fast food and beverage sector, but have not found the right brand to invest in,” he said. (Tassia Sipahutar)
