ANZ Fiji is the largest bank in

Fiji Fiji ( , ,; fj, Viti, ; Fiji Hindi: फ़िजी, ''Fijī''), officially the Republic of Fiji, is an island country in Melanesia, part of Oceania in the South Pacific Ocean. It lies about north-northeast of New Zealand. Fiji consists ...

and has about a 40% market share. ANZ Fiji currently operates 13 branches country-wide.

History

ANZ Fiji traces its presence in Fiji back to 1873 through an acquisition. Investors from

Auckland Auckland (pronounced ) ( mi, Tāmaki Makaurau) is a large metropolitan city in the North Island of New Zealand. The List of New Zealand urban areas by population, most populous urban area in the country and the List of cities in Oceania by po ...

established the Fiji Banking and Commercial Trading Company Limited in 1873. However, the bank's owners sold it in 1876 to the

Bank of New Zealand Bank of New Zealand (BNZ) is one of New Zealand's Big Four (banking), big four banks and has been operating in the country since the first office was opened in Auckland in October 1861 followed shortly after by the first branch in Dunedin in D ...

(

BNZ Bank of New Zealand (BNZ) is one of New Zealand's Big Four (banking), big four banks and has been operating in the country since the first office was opened in Auckland in October 1861 followed shortly after by the first branch in Dunedin in D ...

); ANZ Group acquired BNZ’s operations in 1990 after 114 years of Bank of New Zealand ownership. ANZ’s own entry into the Pacific region dates back to 16 December 1880 when the

Union Bank of Australia The Union Bank of Australia was an Australian bank in operation from 1837 to 1951. It was established in London in October 1837 with a subscribed capital of £500,000. The foundation of the bank had followed a visit to England by Van Diemen's Land ...

(est.1837) opened a branch in the old capital of Fiji,

Levuka Levuka () is a Local government in Fiji, town on the eastern coast of the Fijian island of Ovalau (Fiji), Ovalau, in Lomaiviti Province, in the Eastern Division, Fiji, Eastern Division of Fiji. Prior to 1877, it was the capital of Fiji. At the c ...

. However, the bank closed the branch in 1895. In 1951, Union Bank’s successor,

ANZ ANZ may refer to: People * Anz (musician), a British DJ and electronic musician Banks * ANZ (bank), Australia and New Zealand Banking Group Limited, the fourth-largest bank in Australia ** ANZ Bank New Zealand, the largest bank in New Zealand ** ...

, returned to Fiji with a representative office that it upgraded to a branch. In 1985, ANZ acquired

Barclays Bank Barclays () is a British multinational universal bank, headquartered in London, England. Barclays operates as two divisions, Barclays UK and Barclays International, supported by a service company, Barclays Execution Services. Barclays traces ...

’s operations, which Barclays had established in 1973. In 2001, ANZ bought

Bank of Hawaii The Bank of Hawaii Corporation ( haw, Panakō o Hawaii; abbreviated BOH) is a regional commercial bank headquartered in Honolulu, Hawaii. It is Hawaii's second oldest bank and its largest locally owned bank in that the majority of the voting sto ...

’s Bankoh subsidiary, which had three branches throughout Fiji. Bankoh had entered the Fijian banking market in 1993. In February 2017, ANZ Fiji appointed Saud Abdul Minam as CEO of ANZ Fiji. Previously, Saud Abdul Minam served as Head of Commercial, Pacific at Australia & New Zealand Banking Group Limited. During his tenure as Head of Commercial, ANZ has announced free access to its internet banking platform and website for Vodafone Fiji users.

References

Sources

*Butlin, S. J. 1961. ''Australia and New Zealand Bank: The Bank of Australasia and the Union Bank of Australia Limited, 1828-1951''. London: Longmans, p. 207. *Chappell, N.M. 1961. ''New Zealand Banker’s Hundred: A History of the Bank of New Zealand, 1861-1961''. Wellington: Bank of New Zealand. *Narube, S. and B.T. Whiteside. 1985. “Financial Institutions and Markets in Fiji”. In M. T. Skully, ed. ''Financial Institutions and Markets in the Southwest Pacific''. London: Macmillan Press. *Tschoegl, A.E. 2005. Foreign Banks in the Pacific: A Note. ''Journal of Pacific History''. Banks of Fiji Australia and New Zealand Banking Group Corporate subsidiaries Banks established in 1880 1880 establishments in Fiji {{Fiji-stub