The Australia and New Zealand Banking Group Ltd (ASX: ANZ) share price looks set to end August in the red.
Shares in the S&P/ASX 200 Index (ASX: XJO) bank stock closed out July trading for $25.75. With less than an hour left before the closing bell announces the end to August trading, shares are swapping hands for $25.25.
That's up 0.8% in intraday trade, but the ANZ share price is still down 2% over the month.
While that's not the result shareholders were hoping for in August, for some context, the ASX 200 fell 1.4% over the month.
And, as a better apples-to-apples comparison, the S&P/ASX 200 Financials Index (ASX: XFJ) looks set to close August down 1.7%.
Here's what may have put the ANZ share price under selling pressure.
Image source: Getty Images
What happened with the ANZ share price over the month?
The biggest news surrounding the ASX 200 bank came on 4 August. That's when the Australian Competition and Consumer Commission (ACCC) announced it would block ANZ's acquisition of the banking segment of Suncorp Group Ltd (ASX: SUN).
Interestingly, the ANZ share price finished the day up 0.8%.
The ACC cited concerns that the merger would diminish competition for home loans across Australia, as well as impact lending to small to medium enterprise banking and agribusiness banking in Queensland.
"The proposed acquisition of Suncorp Bank by ANZ would further entrench an oligopoly market structure that is concentrated, with the four major banks dominating," ACCC's deputy chair Mick Keogh said of the decision.
ANZ CEO Shayne Elliott had a decidedly different take.
According to Elliot:
We believe the acquisition will improve competition, which will benefit Australian consumers, particularly in Queensland. All of the relevant markets are intensely competitive and will continue to be intensely competitive after the acquisition.
On 25 August, ANZ filed an application for the Australian Competition Tribunal to review of the ACCC's decision.
"We remain excited about the opportunities for ANZ and our customers in Queensland, and the benefits of bringing Suncorp Bank and its customers into the ANZ Group," Elliot said.
The ANZ share price fell 0.9% on the day.
