The bank will also reduce reliance on mortgage brokers and aim to write more loans directly to boost its revenue from home lending
[SYDNEY] Australia’s ANZ Group said that it would stop the remaining A$800 million (S$676 million) of a share buyback but maintain its dividend as CEO Nuno Matos moves to build cash levels, simplify the bank and win back market share from its rivals.
ANZ on Monday (Oct 13) also outlined plans for A$800 million of pre-tax cost savings this financial year that would come from previously announced job cuts as well as team restructurings and exiting non-core businesses such as online shopping cashback platform Cashrewards.
“Our company has become too complex and at times disintermediated from our customers and we clearly need to improve how we manage our non-financial risks,” Matos told an investor briefing.
Shares in Australia’s fourth-largest bank fell in early trading but turned positive, up 0.3 per cent by 0017 GMT. The S&P/ASX200 was down 0.6 per cent.
Investors had expected the bank would announce plans to cut its dividend or stop the share buyback to help conserve cash.
“For the bank to come out that it is not cutting the dividend is a positive result for shareholders and confirms that the bank is in reasonable shape,” said Michael Haynes, analyst at Atlas Funds Management, which holds ANZ shares.
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Matos said the lender said that it would increase its mortgage and business banker numbers by up to 50 per cent in each division as it bids to win back market share it has lost to major rivals.
The bank will also reduce reliance on mortgage brokers and aim to write more loans directly to boost its revenue from home lending.
ANZ’s shares had underperformed its major rivals but have risen nearly 20 per cent since Matos took over on Jun 1. The bank’s year-to-date gains of 24 per cent outrank the share price rises of its “Big Four” Australian bank rivals Commonwealth Bank of Australia , National Australia Bank and Westpac.
ANZ last month unveiled plans to slash 3,500 jobs at a one-off cost of A$560 million. Matos said on Monday that about 60 per cent of the job cuts would come from the retail bank and technology division.
The former top HSBC executive has launched the reset at ANZ at a time when it is tackling major reputational issues and regulatory wrangles.
The agency in charge of issuing Australian government debt said last week that it would not work with ANZ until the bank improved its risk culture, after a 2023 bond trading scandal.
ANZ agreed with Australia’s corporate regulator to a A$125 million penalty after it was accused of acting “unconscionably” during a syndicated government bond deal in 2023.
The fine was part of a A$240 million penalty the bank agreed to pay after it was also accused of charging fees to thousands of dead customers and miscalculating bonus interest payments.
The bank said on Monday that it expected its final dividend to be in line with its half-year payout and it would apply a 1.5 per cent discount on its next two dividend reinvestment plans.
ANZ unveiled a new A$2 billion share buyback in May 2024 after the bank’s first-half cash earnings largely met analyst estimates, but it had only completed about A$1.2 billion of share purchases before cancelling the buyback on Monday. REUTERS
