SYDNEY - [AAP] Australian and New Zealand Banking Group's (ASX: ANZ) divestment program has continued with the completed sale of its retail and wealth businesses in six Asian countries.

Australia's fourth-largest lender, which announced the deals in 2016, on Thursday said it had transferred the businesses in Indonesia, China, Hong Kong, Taiwan and Singapore to Singapore's DBS Bank, and had also finalised the sale of its Vietnamese retail business to Shinhan Bank.

ANZ group executive Farhan Faruqui said the move would allow the bank to better target its focus.

"With the sale of these retail businesses in Asia now finalised, we can further strengthen our focus on supporting large corporate and institutional customers moving goods and capital across the region," he said in a statement.

ANZ has been continually streamlining its business since Shayne Elliott became chief executive in January 2016, building capital and focusing on its domestic markets.

It has also offloaded its consumer credit insurance business to international insurance giant Zurich for $2.85 billion, but the sale of its New-Zealand finance business to Chinese logistics company HNA Group was blocked by NZ regulators in December.

At 1140 AEDT, ANZ shares were up 26 cents, or 0.9 per cent, at $27.90.

 

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