ANZIS chief exercises put option

ANZ may pay $30 million to buy the remaining 20 per cent stake in ANZ Infrastructure Services from the subsidiary's managing director John Clarke, The Australian reported. Clarke plans to exercise a put option over his minority stake in the business.

The bank initially formed ANZIS as a 50:50 joint venture in 2000 with Morrison & Co Australia, a specialist infrastructure business of which Clarke was managing director and a part-owner, the newspaper reported. ANZ bought another 30 per cent stake in 2001.

ANZIS lifted its net profit from $6.7 million to $12.1million for the 12 months to September 2008.

The business manages a portfolio of about $1 billion in two trusts, the Energy Infrastructure Trust and Diversified Infrastructure Trust.