KUALA LUMPUR (March 8): Australia & New Zealand Banking Group Ltd's ANZ Funds Pty Ltd has completed the disposal of 16.5% or 545.83 million AMMB Holdings Bhd shares, reducing its stake in the lender to 5.17%, according to a filing to Bursa Malaysia on Thursday.

The disposal was pursuant to the block trade agreement dated March 5, 2024 entered into between ANZ Funds, Merrill Lynch (Singapore) Pte Ltd and CIMB Investment Bank Bhd.

It was reported that the share sale, priced at RM3.85 per share or over RM2.1 billion, had been upsized from its initial plan to sell a 9% stake in the company also known as AmBank previously reported by The Edge.

Once completed, the sale will reduce its shareholding in AmBank to 5.2% from 21.7%, "in line with ANZ’s strategy of simplifying the bank", ANZ said in a statement on Wednesday.

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