24 January 2003 14:31
ANZ and Metrobank in credit card joint venture
ANZ shares gained 14 cents to $18.00
AAP jxt/tb
MELBOURNE, Jan 24 AAP - There was plenty of good news today for ANZ Banking Group Ltd which announced a joint venture
in the Philippines and received a good report card from international ratings agency Fitch. ANZ said it has signed a
memorandum of understanding with the Philippines' biggest bank, Metropolitan Bank and Trust Co (Metrobank), to
establish a credit card joint venture there. ANZ managing director consumer finance Brian Hartzer said the alliance
advanced ANZ's specialist credit card business and extended the group's growth options in Asia at low risk.
The partnership combines Metrobank's nationwide and international branch network and exclusive access to its
extensive customer base with ANZ's technology and card expertise, the companies said. Metrobank first
vice-president Domingo Go said the joint venture was expected to establish a new foundation for strategic growth in the
Philippine credit card market by leveraging the complementary strengths of Metrobank and ANZ. Meanwhile, ratings agency
Fitch affirmed its ratings for ANZ at long term AA-minus, short term F1-plus, individual B and support 2. The ratings
affirmation follows Fitch's annual review of the bank and reflects ANZ's solid capitalisation and earnings
profile and sound asset quality, it said. Fitch said the bank's rating outlook is stable. But the ratings agency
said it was concerned about a string of credit quality issues which, individually, had not resulted in changes to the
bank's ratings, but collectively suggested the bank adopted a less rigorous approach to risk management. Fitch said
since 1997, ANZ was the Australian bank most severely affected by the Asian crisis and a series of credit issues such as
the Russian bond crisis which wiped $69 million from ANZ's 1998 full year profit. "Nonetheless, the
bank's asset quality remains sound," said Fitch. "Its ratio of impaired assets to gross loans, though the
highest of the four major Australian banks, is low by international standards," said Fitch.
[AIW [Asia Africa Intelligence Wire]] |
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