Commbank acquisition includes St Andrews

The Commonwealth Bank has acquired both BankWest and the St Andrews wealth management and insurance unit from HBOS Australia in a transaction somewhat larger than that originally flagged by the Australian institution.

Confirmation of the extent of the transaction came in the aftermath of reports out of the United Kingdom suggesting that the Commonwealth would also be acquiring St Andrews.

Until today, statements issued by the Commonwealth have only made reference to the purchase of the BankWest unit.

The reports out of London suggest that the transaction being negotiated between the Commonwealth and HBOS is worth in the order of $2.1 billion, which is around a third of what analysts initially estimated the divisions would fetch.

That figure was later confirmed in the Commonwealth’s announcement to the Australian Securities Exchange.

HBOS Australia contains not only the BankWest and St Andrews Australia units but Capital Finance Australia Limited.

While the acquisition of BankWest has been seen as ensuring the Commonwealth retains its dominance as Australia’s largest mortgage lender in the face of the Westpac merger with St George, the allied acquisition of St Andrews Australia will add substantial bulk to the bank’s already expansive wealth management and insurance operations.