Australian Banks in Asia: A New Regionalism?

Despite their long track record in Asia, Australian banks have always preferred to prioritise their domestic markets. However, recent moves suggest the big players may be prepared to adopt a more regional focus.

ANZ leads the way in terms of regional expansion, despite being only the third largest of the ‘big four’ Australian banks by market capitalisation. A first foray into Japan in 1969 was followed by ventures in 9 countries, including China, Indonesia and Vietnam – and this focus on new markets and business lines throughout the Asian region looks set to continue.

Since joining ANZ, chief executive Mike Smith has focused on Asia as the key market for development. This approach was strongly illustrated by the recruitment of high profile banker Alex Thursby from Standard Chartered Bank in August 2007 as new Group MD for ANZ Asia, underpinning the bank’s and Smith’s ambition: to be a key Asian player alongside HSBC and Standard Chartered. The announcement late last year of plans by ANZ to acquire Royal Bank of Scotland’s (RBS) retail and commercial business throughout Asia is another clear statement of intent in this regard.

The Commonwealth Bank (CommBank) recently sought to capitalise on opportunities in the budding Vietnamese financial services market through buying a 20% stake in Vietnam International Bank. Although less ambitious than ANZ’s all-conquering approach, this step could be another sign of things to come, with traditionally conservative domestically-focused Australian banks such as CommBank looking to compete with rivals, and in the process, emerge as bigger regional players.

As a point of comparison, however, Westpac seems less interested in stepping up expansion into emerging markets just yet. Senior executives in late 2009 appeared set on an Australia/New Zealand focus in the near term, although this may change as economic conditions improve.

The entrance of new players into new markets is expected to lead to an increase in recruitment opportunities in a variety of areas. The current focus appears to be retail banking, but regionally-experienced high calibre candidates in corporate and wealth management are likely to experience increased demand as Australian banks develop and diversify their Asian businesses further.

With consultants and networks covering every major financial centre in Asia, ALS International recruits for many leading banks throughout the region. For more information regarding current opportunities, please contact Anthony Lewis (a.lewis@alsrecruit.com, +852 2973 0826) or Pernille Storm (p.storm@alsrecruit.com, +65 6557 4159).