Commonwealth Bank of Australia (CBA) has announced all regulatory approvals have been received for the sale of a 55 per cent interest in Colonial First State (CFS) to KKR.
The transaction is expected to be completed on 1 December 2021.
CBA first announced the CFS divestment to KKR for $1.7 billion last May but faced backlash from the unions with the ACTU arguing it would not be in the best interest of members for CFS to be majority owned by a foreign private equity firm.
The completion of the transaction is expected to result in a pro forma uplift to the Group’s CET1 ratio by 30 to 40 basis points.
Earlier this month, the big four banks confirmed NPAT of $2.2 billion for the quarter in an unaudited trading update, while also noting increases to household deposits (up 12 per cent to $20.4 billion), home lending (up 7.6 per cent to $10.1 billion) and business lending (up 13 per cent to $3.1 billion).
CBA is currently pursuing the divestment of CommInsure General Insurance to be completed in the second half of calendar year 2022, pending regulatory approval.
Maja Garaca Djurdjevic
Maja's career in journalism spans well over a decade across finance, business and politics. Now an experienced editor and reporter across all elements of the financial services sector, prior to joining Momentum Media, Maja reported for several established news outlets in Southeast Europe, scrutinising key processes in post-conflict societies.
