Bank of Queensland Limited (ASX: BOQ) shares have experienced a strong rise since the pandemic. Can Bank of Queensland shares maintain this momentum?
BOQ share price
CEO on the lookout for acquisitions
In an interview with the Sydney Morning Herald, CEO George Frazis notes the bank is open to more takeovers.
Frazis advised the bank has already reviewed four potential acquisitions in the last 18 months.
Why is this the case?
Bank of Queensland and management have strong ambitions to become a genuine challenger to the big 4 banks like Commonwealth Bank (ASX: CBA), National Australia Bank (ASX: NAB), Australia and New Zealand Bank (ASX: ANZ), and Westpac (ASX: WBC).
This comes on the back of its acquisition of ME Bank, which cost $1.3 billion.
What’s on Frazis’ radar?
It appears anything is in Frazis’ sight, ranging from neobanks to traditional lenders. This will come down to whether an opportunity is a sound strategic and financial fit with the Bank of Queensland.
Frazis also shed some light on what he believes Bank of Queensland’s competitive advantages are, which include deep industry knowledge possessed by branch managers and its technology overhaul.
Bank of Queensland is in the process of replacing its entire banking platform with an end to end digital platform in the cloud.
My thoughts
Given interest rates are at record lows, it makes sense for Bank of Queensland to increase loan volume through takeovers.
Interestingly, Frazis noted the bank will focus on growing the branch network and is aiming to improve the customer experience through face-to-face contact. This is contrary to the other banks that have been closing branches.
This is an interesting play because this will increase rent expenditure but will improve customer service.
Frazis is banking on customers valuing physical service over online service.
I think consumers will likely prefer the convenience and flexibility of online service, so I’m quite bearish on this move.
However, Bank of Queensland is making significant inroads with its digital platform, which could be a game-changer.
Check out this article, if you’re interested in finding out what Bank of Queensland shares are potentially worth in July.
