Elliott: momentum building on rebalancing; key markets robust; cost control good

“It was a decent result in a year which you would term as transitional,” Shayne Elliott told BlueNotes on video.

" The underlying business did well, we continue to grow market share, we continue to have more customers choose to bank with us."
Shayne Elliott, ANZ CEO

“The underlying business did well, we continue to grow market share, we continue to have more customers choose to bank with us….Our cost performance was the best we have seen in 16 years.”

ANZ posted a full-year cash profit of $A5.9 billion, down 18 per cent on the previous corresponding period. Statutory profit was $A5.7 billion, down 24 per cent mainly on specified items including accounting treatment of technology costs and for productivity initiatives.

Elliott said the bank’s consumer and small business franchises in Australia and New Zealand producing produced strong results based on disciplined market share gains and tight cost management.

“Certainly here in Australia the economy is in good shape,” he said, adding while there were pockets of stress there was “nothing to be alarmed about”.

Elliott said the decision to look at selling the Australian wealth business reflected a focus on the bank could best interact with customers rather than necessarily manufacturing products.

He also addressed the political environment around banking and outlined the bank’s outlook for sustainable growth and need to “learn new habits”.

Watch the video above to find out more.

Andrew Cornell is managing editor at BlueNotes

You can watch ANZ chief financial officer Michelle Jablko speak about the ANZ result HERE.