New Zealand endorses NAB’s bid for AXA APH

NAB’s takeover of $284mln AXA APH assets still needs nod from NZ's Commerce Commission.

The New Zealand government has granted foreign investment approval to National Australia Bank's (NAB) application to acquire the New Zealand assets of AXA Asia Pacific Holdings.

The approval was granted over a month ago, with NZ's Overseas Investment Office (OIO) informing NAB of the consent on May 28.

The OIO confirmed the consent to AAP on Friday.

The OIO said the transaction satisfied investment criteria set out under section 18 of New Zealand's Overseas Investment Act 2005.

NAB still has to apply to NZ's Commerce Commission for its clearance of the bid for AXA APH, whose NZ assets are worth $NZ412.5 million ($283.8 million).

The OIO approval was granted before NAB, AXA APH and its French parent AXA SA, agreed on June 1 to extend an exclusivity agreement applying to NAB's $13.3 billion bid for AXA APH to allow NAB more time to win approval from Australia's competition regulator.

View the full story in Sydney Morning Herald.