Bank Of Queensland To Buy CIT's Australia, New Zealand Vendor Finance Operations

Bank of Queensland Ltd. (BOQ.AU) has agreed to buy CIT Group Inc.'s (CIT) Australian and New Zealand businesses, expanding its vendor equipment finance operations, CIT said Tuesday.

In a statement, CIT said Bank of Queensland will buy its vendor equipment finance business which operates in the information technology and office market as well as in the motorcycle and power equipment markets.

The deal will significantly expand Bank of Queensland's vendor equipment finance book of A$3.4 billion. At Dec. 31, CIT Australia and New Zealand had A$525 million in assets and around 125 employees.

"This purchase provides BOQ with access to a strategic specialised market and an ideal growth platform from which to grow new vendor relationships," Bank of Queensland Chief Executive David Liddy said in the statement. "We see significant growth in the vendor finance market and this acquisition provides an ideal growth platform for BOQ," he said.

The acquisition is expected to be immediately earnings per share accretive, Liddy said, although he added the transaction will not have a material impact on the group's full year results.

Financial terms of the deal were not disclosed.

-By Lyndal McFarland, Dow Jones Newswires; 61-3-9292-2093; [e-mail]