ANZ Banking Group Ltd
(ASX:ANZ) has pulled out of a bidding war for Korea Exchange Bank after being trumped by Korean rival Hana Financial Group.
Hana has signed a deal to buy a 51 per cent stake in the Korean bank from US private equity firm Lone Star for up to $4.3 billion.
ANZ was carrying out due diligence on the proposed acquisition but released a statement saying it would not put forward a counter bid.
For the year ended 30 June 2010, ANZ reported a net profit of $4.5 billion.
