Indonesia's Mandiri to open branches in Vietnam, Myanmar, Thailand

Bank Mandiri may open branches in three neighboring countries as part of its plan to become a top lender in Southeast Asia.

This was announced by Riswinandi, the lender’s vice president director.

The Jakarta-based lender hopes to catch up with regional rivals such as Singapore’s DBS Group Holdings and Overseas Chinese Banking Corporationin terms of market capitalization.

The bank has total assets of Rp 547 trillion or $58 billion.

Riswinandi said the lender was working with regulators in the countries where it aimed to open branches.

“No need to rush,” he said. “We have to make sure all regulations are met.”

Bank Mandiri has set an ambitious target to become one of the region’s top five banks by 2013 and one of the top three banks by 2020.

Riswinandi did not disclose Bank Mandiri’s full plan to extend its reach in the region.

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