JPM-AUSTRAUAFRSTTO MARKET Top Stories-20250910

Large restructure program announced, but finer details of strategy still another month away

ANZ released a one-page announcement this morning indicating that 3,500 employees will depart the group by September2026 and it will reduce engagement with consultants and other third parties. The latter will impact around 1,000 managedservices contractors. The 2H25 P&L is expected to include a restructuring charge of ~$560m pre-tax. A strategy update toinvestors will be provided on 13 October 2025. ANZ has 43k employees, so this is a very large 8% reduction in the workforce,and the gross reduction in the cost base could be at least 6% on our estimates (on a pro-forma FY27 basis). Given the strategyupdate is still a month away, it is not clear whether there will be a partial offset from increased investment, noting that ANZ isunder-spending vs peers and in many cases is lagging competitors by some distance in franchise offering and technologycapability. The restructuring charge equates to an 8bps drag on capital, and this may have implications for the buyback (whichhas ~$830m remaining). We are Neutral rated on ANZ but it is our #2 pick in the majors behind NAB (OW).