ANZ is reportedly in advanced negotiations to buy the Royal Bank of Scotland's retail and commercial banking units in five Asian countries, according to The New Zealand Herald.
Sources told the newspaper that the ANZ is eyeing up units in Hong Kong, Taiwan, Singapore, Vietnam and Indonesia.
The Royal Bank of Scotland is pulling back to its core markets and had invited ANZ, along with HSBC Holdings and Standard Chartered, to participate in the sales process.
RBS is 70% owned by the UK government and plans to exit or shrink in up to 36 of the countries where it operates after posting a record loss last year.
Market analyst Ross Cuthbert in April said the acquisitions could be a good option for ANZ who is looking to grow their business in Asia.
ANZ's CEO Michael Smith is aiming to increase the proportion of income from Asia to 20% as bad loans in its domestic markets squeeze profit, the newspaper said.
ANZ reportedly sold $AU2.5 billion of shares in May to fund the bid.
Contender Standard Chartered is looking to acquire RBS'
businesses in China, India and Malaysia.
