RBNZ gives go-ahead to ANZ National Bank merger
The Reserve Bank has agreed to the ANZ and the National Bank merging to form a single bank, which will be known as ANZ
National Bank Ltd.
This follows the Reserve Bank back in October 2003 agreeing to the ANZ buying the National Bank, but at that stage the
Reserve Bank required that the two banks remain separate legal entities.
Reserve Bank Deputy Governor Adrian Orr said "The Reserve Bank has set two additional conditions of registration for the
new bank.
"The new bank is required to operate under a governance structure where the primary duty of the New Zealand board of
directors and senior management is to the New Zealand bank. Also, the new bank must have unambiguous access to the
technical and management capacity necessary to stay in business if any of its major outsourced service providers,
including its Australian owner, fails to deliver.
"The new bank's management has undertaken that by 31 December 2005 they will have facilities in place so they can
operate stand alone if required. The governance requirements take effect immediately".
A letter from the Reserve Bank to the ANZ explaining the Reserve Bank's thinking and a background note are available on
the Reserve Bank's website at http://www.rbnz.govt.nz.