ANZ chief executive Mike Smith left his audience bemused at an analysts' briefing yesterday, held just before the bank's annual general meeting, when he said the bank was aiming for a step change that would lead to a doubling of earnings over the next five years, with a strong focus on Asia, while also saying that expansion would be largely organic and carefully considered.Smith called the briefing to give some feedback on his impressions of the bank after a few months in the top job and to clarify his strategy for turning the bank into a "super-regional". Smith said that by 2012 he hoped to have 20 per cent of the bank's profit coming out of Asia. ANZ's cash earnings in 2007 were $3.9 billion. If the bank is going to meet its target, Asian operations will have to contribute around $1.5 billion of earnings. In 2007 Asia-Pacific businesses contributed $290 million to the overall result. The contribution will have to increase five-fold.Analysts have expressed concern that Smith will not be able to achieve his goals for growth in Asia without betting the bank on a big (and risky) acquisition. He said: "Investors are worried about big, dilutive acquisitions. Most of our growth from Asia over the next few years will come organically. We will make infill acquisitions but those are not the main game."Smith is confident he can drive the Asian business a lot harder by introducing a wider range of products and services into existing joint ventures. He said the product set was narrow and nominated credit cards and market services as two areas for expansion. He said the Asian business was "a good platform" but "a bit hit and miss". The activities of the businesses across the region were not well co-ordinated."We can get a lot more out of it. A lot of our Australian customers are doing business in Asia but we are not always on the other side of the deal."Smith said he would consider an Asian listing. "There is interest there in what we are doing and it would help us broaden our shareholder base."The bank will deepen its relationships in its key Asian markets - Malaysia, Indonesia and Indochina (Vietnam, Thailand and Cambodia). The bank will increase its investment in its technology and operations centre in Bangalore, India.