AUSTRALIA and New Zealand Banking Group Ltd., a financial institution with $186 billion in assets, will venture into the Micronesian region and is considering establishing branches in the Northern Marianas and Guam.
Gary Ayre, head of the bank’s strategic projects for the Pacific area, and Australian Trade Commissioner Graham Poon yesterday met with acting Gov. Paul A. Manglona, Commerce Secretary Fermin Atalig and Deputy Banking Director Lilian Pangelinan.
ANZ Bank, according to Ayre, is considering “many options” in the Northern Marianas, including the establishment of a branch or the acquisition of an existing bank branch like the local office of Hong Kong Shanghai Banking Corp., which will cease its Northern Marianas operation this December.
Ayre, however, said they have no plans to bail out Bank of Saipan, adding that the local financial institution is in a “complicated” situation.
Still, Poon said the local banking industry has a “lot of potential.”
“We would be extremely pleased if ANZ would be engaged in this region,” Poon said.
Manglona said it is encouraging to know that despite the Bank of Saipan fiasco, foreign banks still want to invest in the commonwealth.
“It is welcome news to know that there will be an Australian bank here,” Manglona said.
Under the commonwealth law, ANZ Bank is qualified to do business in the CNMI since its investment is over $100 million.
Atalig, who is also the banking commissioner, said they asked ANZ Bank to file an application with the CNMI government.
ANZ Bank is the biggest bank in the Pacific region, and one of the top four banks in Australia.
It has $5 billion in shareholders stocks, with 775 branches in Australia, 143 branches in New Zealand, and several other branches in the Cook Islands, Fiji, Papua New Guinea, the Solomon Islands, Samoa, Tonga, Vanuatu and American Samoa.
