Suncorp-ANZ deal the elephant in the room

Suncorp boss Steven Johnston has obviously been a little bit frustrated at the time taken to offload the financial group’s banking operations to ANZ.

The Suncorp ANZ deal compared to the gestation period of the African elephant.

Suncorp boss Steve Johnston has obviously been a little bit frustrated at the time taken to offload the financial group’s banking operations to ANZ.

City Beat readers will recall that approval of the $4.9bn deal first announced in June 2022 has been stymied by a long-drawn out, but ultimately failed, challenge by the Australian Competition and Consumer (ACCC) and other regulatory issues.

Johnston (illustrated) made his frustrations clear at the Queensland Future’s Institute financial forum last week when he compared the deal to the birth cycle of the African elephant.

“We’re now at 683 days since we announced the transaction,” Johnston said at a panel discussion on Friday that included ANZ public affairs executive Tony Warren.

Suncorp Group chief executive Steve Johnston

“I know I was here 12 months ago talking with (ANZ boss) Shayne (Elliott) about the transaction and 683 days later, we’re still working on the conclusion of it. I did a bit of research into the gestation period for the African elephant and its 22 months or 680 days, so we’ve gone beyond that.

“I don’t know whether that means that Tony (Warren) has been carrying that weight for a long time but I would have been tucked up in the foetal position for a long time.”

However, Johnston put somewhat of a positive spin on the time taken to seal the deal, noting “The African elephant gestates for that period of time because it emerges in a very intelligent manner, and it’s very competent when it comes out.” Fair enough.

Green effort

It’s a regular target of greenies, but the New Acland mine near Oakey is certainly doing its bit for the environment at the moment.

Work has begun on New Acland’s 13.5km Lagoon Creek Conservation Zone, which will see more than 3000 trees planted over the next decade. The project will complement rehabilitation from previously mined areas and strengthen progressive rehabilitation practices.

Stretching through the mining operation, the Lagoon Creek Conservation Zone will see the vegetation corridor along Lagoon Creek widened to more than 100 metres.

New Acland Mine general manager Dave O’Dwyer says the Lagoon Creek Conservation Zone will enhance animal and plant biodiversity.

“In total, more than 135ha of land alongside Lagoon Creek will be prioritised and planted with native vegetation, including eucalyptus, paper bark and other refuge trees, designed to significantly boost the local koala population,” says O’Dwyer.

New Acland Mine general manager Dave O’Dwyer.

Fizzy fun

Gold Coast based independent alcohol brand Hard FIZZ, has just racked up $12 million in sales this year, but hasn’t spent a cent on advertising – it’s all guerrilla marketing.
A case in point is the recent LIV Golf event in Adelaide where Greg Norman as well as Cameron Smith and Ian Poulter were seen doing ‘shoeys’ from a Hard FIZZ shoe with the footage and images going viral.

At the recent beach concert on Coolangatta Beach, where FIZZ owner DJ FISHER was performing, the brand sold $500,000 worth of drinks in eight hours.

Hard FIZZ was founded by an investor group of ‘celebrities’ including professional surfer Laura Enever and TV chef Hayden Quinn, giving it an instant profile not enjoyed by other start-ups. In the past 12 months, Hard FIZZ has moved three and half million cans and more than one million litres in volume, the metric by which the alcohol industry benchmarks itself.

Paul Fisher