(31 August 2006 – Australia) Landmark, a company owned by the Australian Wheat Board, announced it would purchase Adelaide Bank’s rural lending portfolio for $A160 million.The purchase, which is expected to be completed on September 15, will take the total value of Landmark’s loan book to over A$2 billion and will extend the company’s footprint in Australia’s rural finance market.
“This represented a rare opportunity to acquire an established loan book with a good credit risk and geographical spread. It is a natural fit with the Landmark business, and is aligned with our growth strategy in the rural finance market,” said Landmark’s general manager, financial services, Colin Taylor.
Adelaide Bank is based in SA but it says more than 75 percent of its loans are outside the State. Its rural lending portfolio is distributed across SA, WA, NSW and Victoria. As a part of the deal, eight experienced agribusiness staff will move from Adelaide Bank into roles within the Landmark business.
Taylor said that Landmark would stay on the lookout for growth opportunities and did not rule out further strategic acquisitions in the future.