Australia and New Zealand Banking Group (ANZ) has come to an agreement to acquire Suncorp Group’s banking operations for A$4.9bn ($3.3bn). This move is in accordance with the bank’s expansion plans, which will allow it to better compete with its larger rivals. In order to fund the purchase, the lender intends to raise approximately A$3.5bn of equity. Bloomberg notes that this deal gives ANZ control over one of the country’s largest retail banks that has a huge presence in Queensland, the fastest-growing state by population. ANZ head Shayne Elliott said in a statement, “With much of the work to simplify and strengthen the bank completed, and our digital transformation well-progressed, we are now in a position to invest in and reshape our Australian business. This will result in a stronger, more balanced bank for customers and shareholders.”
Separately, ANZ also mentioned that they have pulled their interest from the acquisition of MYOB, an accounting software business, backed by KKR & Co.
ANZ’s 1.976 perps are trading higher at 70.5 cents to the dollar, up by 0.36pts at a yield of 4.54%.
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