Australia & New Zealand Banking Group Ltd.
ANZ,
said it has agreed to buy regional lender Suncorp Bank for about 4.9 billion Australian dollars ($3.3 billion), in a deal that could accelerate growth of its retail and commercial businesses.
The acquisition of Suncorp Bank from Suncorp Group Ltd.
SUN,
will be funded by selling new shares to raise about A$3.5 billion and from existing capital, ANZ said Monday. The entitlement offer price of A$18.90/share is a 12.7% discount to ANZ’s last closing price.
Suncorp Bank, based in Australia’s Queensland state, has a home loan portfolio of about A$47 billion and A$45 billion in deposits.
ANZ said the deal will boost growth of its retail and commercial businesses and also improve the geographic balance of its business in Australia.
This post was originally published on Market Watch
