ANZ yesterday said the Federal Court cleared a shareholder vote on the proposal to establish a non-operating holding company and to separate ANZ’s banking and certain non-banking businesses into two groups.

The restructure proposes to establish ANZ Group Holdings Limited (ANZ NOHC) as the new listed parent company of the ANZ group by a scheme of arrangement, and to separate ANZ’s banking and certain non-banking businesses into the Bank Group and Non-Bank Group.

The bank did not identify the non-banking businesses.

ANZ shareholders will be asked to vote on the scheme on 15 December 2022. This vote will follow ANZ’s 2022 Annual General Meeting to be held on the same day.

“The restructure aims to assist ANZ to better deliver its strategy to strengthen and grow its core business further,” the bank said. 

If the scheme is approved and goes ahead, ANZ shareholders will receive the same number of shares in ANZ NOHC as their existing shares, unless the ANZ shareholder is an ineligible foreign shareholder.

The Explanatory Memorandum will be released following registration with ASIC.