Australia & New Zealand Group Ltd. (ANZ.AU) will continue to target "bolt-on" acquisitions in Asia, having signed a deal to buy some of Royal Bank of Scotland Group PLC's (RBS) banking operations in the region for US$550 million, ANZ Chief Executive Mike Smith said Tuesday.

Smith told Bloomberg Television in an interview that he didn't view the RBS deal as "transformational" for Melbourne-based ANZ, which aims to become a "super regional" lender in Asia.

ANZ built has amassed a A$4.7 billion warchest to help fund acquisitions and bolster capital after recent share placements.

ANZ will buy RBS' commercial and retail banking operations in Hong Kong, Singapore, Taiwan, Vietnam, Indonesia and the Philippines, but didn't go after assets in China or India.

Smith said that the regulatory process to buy RBS' operations in India, where the lender is applying for a banking license, would have been onerous, and the price tag for the group's Chinese business was too high.

RBS said earlier Tuesday it remains in talks to sell other assets in Asia. People familiar with the situation have said Standard Chartered PLC is interested in RBS' operations in India and China.

-By Lyndal McFarland, Dow Jones Newswires; 61-3-9292-2093; lyndal.mcfarland@dowjones.com
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