SANWA BANK ACQUIRES SMALL STAKE IN PORTUGUESE BANK

  Sanwa Bank Ltd &lt;ANWA.T> has agreed to buy
  a two pct stake in Oporto-based &lt;Banco Portugues de Investmento
  Sarl> (BPI), Portugal's largest merchant bank, a Sanwa official
  said.
      Sanwa will purchase the shares from International Finance
  Corp, a BPI shareholder and sister organisation of the World
  Bank, for 351 mln yen, he said.
      The acquisition will be completed this month as both the
  Japanese and Portuguse governments are expected to give
  permission soon.  This is the first time a Japanese bank has
  bought a stake in a Portuguese bank.
      Sanwa plans to increase its stake in BPI to four pct, the
  ceiling for foreign shareholders, the official said.
      The bank has also agreed with &lt;Banco Portugues do
  Atlantico>, a state-owned merchant bank in Oporto, to exchange
  information on customers and help accelerate Japanese
  investment and technological transfers to Portugal, he said.
  

