TAIPEI/HONG KONG, Dec 2 (Reuters) - China's ICBC (1398.HK) is in talks to buy a stake in Taiwan's Cathay Financial (2882.TW), sources familiar with the matter said on Wednesday, in a deal that could be worth more than $3 billion.
One source said that ICBC was interested in buying a roughly 20 percent stake in Cathay Financial, Taiwan's top listed financial holding group. A stake that size would be worth more than $3 billion based on the company's market capitalisation.
Another source said that the talks were in their early stages. ICBC and Cathay Financial declined to comment.
The sources did not want to be named because they were not authorised to speak publicly about the deal.