Asian Asset Sales and Cost Cuts Lifts ANZ
After a slump in earnings this time last year, ANZ, which has been cutting costs and offloading poorly performing assets, has reported a bounce-back in its returns.
A sharp fall in charges for bad debts has seen a rebound in ANZ Bank's full-year cash profit, which jumped 18 percent in the year to $6.9 billion. The bank CEO however, citing fierce competition and tougher regulation, warned the current year would get more challenging.
«This is a good result which demonstrates further progress in becoming a better balanced, better capitalised, more efficient bank,» said Shayne Elliott, ANZ chief executive.
Asian Divestment
The equivalent of more than 1600 full-time staff have been cut from the bank in the past year, mostly in its offshore Asia retail and Pacific division. The result has taken into account the sale of its Asian Retail and Wealth business to DBS Bank and equity accounted earnings from Shanghai Rural Commercial Bank and Bank of Taiwan.
Other sales including the recent disposal of wealth unit OnePath Pensions business and the Metrocard stake in the Philippines-based Metrobank Card joint venture are yet to be reflected in the result.
Rate Rigging Case
The powerhouse for the result was ANZ's institutional bank, which delivered a $1.84 billion cash profit for the year, up 76 percent on the previous year. The Australian division produced a $3.7 billion cash profit, up 4 percent over the previous year.
ANZ this week said it had reached a confidential settlement with the Australian Securities and Investments Commission, which alleges it and other major banks tried to rig the bank bill swap rate. The result did not reveal the size of the settlement, but noted it had occurred and said its financial impact had been largely covered by provisions it already held.
