KUALA LUMPUR: Australia’s fourth-largest bank, ANZ Group, has upsized its initial plan, opting to divest a larger 16.5% stake in AMMB Holdings Bhd (AmBank) instead of the initially proposed 9%.
In a statement, ANZ said it agreed to sell 16.5% of the issued capital in AMMB Holdings Bhd (AmBank) via a block trade at a price of RM3.85 per share.
“The sale will reduce ANZ’s shareholding in AmBank from 21.7% to 5.2% and is in line with ANZ’s strategy of simplifying the bank.
“Following the sale, ANZ will continue to have one nominated director on the AmBank Board,” ANZ said.
ANZ said the sale proceeds will increase ANZ’s common equity tier 1 (CET1) ratio by approximately 16 basis points and are not expected to have a material impact on profit.
Settlement is anticipated to occur on March 8. ANZ’s capital management considerations will include the capital release from this sale, subject to regulatory approvals.