Hana Willing to Renegotiate $4.1 Billion KEB Deal

Hana Financial Group <086790.KS> is willing to renegotiate its agreed $4.1 billion deal to buy Korea Exchange Bank <004940.KS> from Lone Star, should the U.S. fund decide not to appeal a court verdict against it, Hana's chairman said on Tuesday.

Lone Star was found guilty of manipulating stock prices of a KEB unit last week, clearing a legal uncertainty clouding the fund's exit from South Korea, as Korean regulators held off approval for the deal citing legal issues.

It can appeal against the ruling by Thursday.

Market talk has swirled recently that Hana may be trying to cut the agreed purchase price as KEB shares have tumbled sharply since the transaction was agreed on due to the global financial market turmoil.

"We are willing to renegotiate (the deal), should Lone Star not appeal the verdict," Hana chairman Kim Seung-yu told Reuters on the sidelines of a local forum.

(Reporting by Ju-min Park and Hyunjoo Jin; Editing by Jonathan Hopfner)