IT investment an ANZ priority

John Kavanagh
ANZ chief executive Mike Smith declared Australia a banking technology backwater and vowed to give ANZ a competitive advantage in IT and technology development.

Speaking at a lunch in Sydney organised by the Trans-Tasman Business Circle, Smith said: "I think the real question is not how we compare to our domestic competitors but rather how does our internet banking compare with Wells Fargo's?

"How do our ATMs compare with Spain's Santander? You can practically cook dinner with a French ATM. They sell insurance, approve mortgages. It's quite amazing.

"But where is that perspective in Australasia? This is about the central role technology can play in producing best-in-class solutions for our customers."

One context to Smith's comments on technology was an admission that "our customers expect that we know about all their transactions with us. For us, and many other banks, that is simply not the case."

Smith went on to say that "There is no doubt in my mind that productivity will be one of the keys to not only a company's success in a still globalising world, but also to its very survival."

Smith said Australia had critical skills shortages in some technology areas. He described the establishment of the bank's technology and operations centre in Bangalore, India, as an act of foresight and said it would give ANZ a competitive advantage in the development of banking technology.

"The most efficient bank in the word today is India's ICICI. Its success is largely based on the innovative use of technology.

"Technology has enabled ICICI to serve close to 20 million customers today compared to just 100,000 in 2000.

"Our business in India gives us an advantage over our local competitors in IT. We are a long way behind countries such as France, Spain, South Korea. The consumer is affected by that. It is a huge opportunity."