One potential hurdle facing any ANZ purchase of Suncorp’s bank is the Australian Competition and Consumer Commission, which has expressed concerns about competition in retail banking in recent years. The watchdog would be expected to probe any deal. However, Martin said he did not think the ACCC would seek to oppose a potential sale, given ANZ was the nation’s fourth-biggest retail bank.

ANZ’s retail bank has struggled in recent years due to delays in home loan processing, which have caused it to lose market share. Buying Suncorp would not only bulk up its mortgage portfolio, but it would also give it a greater exposure to Suncorp’s home state of Queensland.

A source close to Bendigo and Adelaide Bank who was not authorised to speak publicly said the regional lender had also approached Suncorp regarding its banking arm in recent months, but Suncorp had not engaged with Bendigo.

The market was last week wary towards ANZ’s interest in potentially buying MYOB, which is owned by private equity giant KKR. A source close to these talks said the discussions with ANZ had now been put on hold.

JP Morgan analyst Andrew Triggs said in a note to clients last week that he had mixed views on the mooted MYOB deal, and expected the market to remain “wary”. While buying MYOB could have benefits, he said the bank should arguably be focusing on turning around its performance in mortgages. He added banks had generally been less successful with “tangential” acquisitions, such as in wealth and insurance.

“While there are some potential positives from the integration of ANZ’s Business bank with MYOB, we expect the market to remain wary especially with any pay-offs being long dated,” Triggs said.

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