ANZ to sell Vietnam retail business to Shinhan Bank

ANZ has agreed to sell its retail business in Vietnam to South Korea’s Shinhan Bank Vietnam, part of a broader retreat from Asia retail banking.

ANZ said its retail business served 125,000 customers in Vietnam and included A$320m ($240m) in lending assets and A$800m in deposits, but did not disclose the terms of the deal, stating that “premium to book value for the sale of the retail business in Vietnam is not material to the ANZ Group.”

The deal, subject to regulatory approval and expected to be completed by the end of 2017, is the latest step in the Australian lender’s retreat from the retail banking sector in Asia. It follows ANZ’s sale of a 20 per cent stake in Shanghai Rural Commercial bank in January and comes as the bank seeks to divest from similar stakes or joint ventures in Malaysia, Indonesia, China and the Philippines.

Farhan Faruqui, head of international business at ANZ, said the agreement included all eight branches in Hanoi and Ho Chi Minh City and ongoing roles for all retail staff.

Mr Faruqui said the sale is “in line with our strategy to simplify the bank and improve capital efficiency. It allows us to focus resources on our largest business in Asia -institutional banking.”