Monday, March 3, 2008

National Australia Bank May Consider U.S. Acquisition

National Australia Bank Ltd., the country's biggest by assets, may consider buying a bank that serves farmers in the U.S. Northwest, Chief Executive Officer John Stewart said.

Stewart, who last year announced the $798 million acquisition of Omaha-based Great Western Bancorporation Inc., was speaking at an Australia-Israel Chamber of Commerce gathering in Sydney today.

Potential targets could include banks that serve large, efficient farming communities that don't rely on government subsidies, such as in the nation's northwest, Stewart said. He didn't identify specific targets.

National Australia, which in October posted a record profit, is winning back investors' confidence after a currency trading scandal in 2004 and $2.2 billion in writedowns from the 1998 acquisition of Florida-based mortgage company HomeSide Lending Inc.

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