Australia's settled banking oligopoly approaches unfamiliar waters in coming weeks, with the deep engagement of the sector with 2016 electoral politics bound to trigger advanced strategic plotting around the sector.Dull, audacious and, for some, welcoming options are in the wings on the M&A front in Australian finance.The Colonial BT/ MLC /NAB /ANZ wealth wasteland is crying out for a cull, with more JVs and walkovers needed. A voluntary reset to pacify Canberra is inevitable for two of these names and the spark, dare we hope, for creative thinking.Offshore names, often Asia linked, are keen scouts for opportunity in Australian financial services.Blockbuster takeovers are well and truly on the agenda.The whispers around this may soon turn into fact.National Australia Bank is set on a course for the board to recommend an offer from an Asian bank (which one we are yet to ascertain). A near ideal reform in a testy sector.