HSBC Holdings Ltd., a London-based bank with appetite for Asian expansion, is expected to be the preferred bidder in the sale of Korea First Bank, South Korea’s third largest bank, ranking just behind Citibank Korea Inc. and Korea Exchange Bank.

Another participant in the race is Standard Chartered Plc. Korea First Bank puts on sale a 48.6% stake and may sell the rest to the buyer later on. The deal is projected to have a value of up to $3.3 billion.

At the moment Citigroup that acquired KorAm Bank, now Citibank Korea Inc., for $2.7 billion in May 2004, is the key player in the South Korean market that rebounds after the dampened consumer debt boom of 2002.

Korea First Bank’s assets total about 44 trillion won. The bank that was nationalised after the 1997-98 Asian financial crisis now has 404 local branches and over 3.5 million customers.