ANZ’s Smith revels in 'value buy' of RBS assets

The group’s chief executive delights in the acquisition of select RBS Asian assets for US$550 million, or 1.1 times book value, describing the financial crisis as a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity. He conceded the bank would need to bed this deal down, but refused to rule out further purchases. Meanwhile, RBS confirmed it was in advanced discussions over the remaining Asia assets it plans to sell.