ANZ has announced its A$1,760 million acquisition of ING Group's 51% shareholdings in the ANZ-ING wealth-management and life-insurance joint ventures in Australia and New Zealand. We have affirmed the ratings on ANZ because the proposed acquisition is not considered to be a risky or unrelated business, and is not expected to significantly affect the bank's capital and funding positions. On Sept. 25, 2009, Standard&Poor's Ratings Services affirmed its 'AA' and 'A-1+' ratings on Australia and New Zealand Banking Group Ltd. (ANZ) and its core subsidiaries. The affirmation follows ANZ's announcement of the acquisition of ING Group's 51% shareholdings in the ANZ-ING wealth-management and life-insurance joint ventures (JV) in Australia and New Zealand for A$1,760 million. The outlook is
