ANZ Chief Eyed as Barclays Head

Mike Smith, the chief executive of Australia and New Zealand Banking Group (ANZ), is reportedly being eyed as a possible replacement of Bob Diamond, who just resigned as Barclays head amid the rate-fixing scandal hounding the United Kingdom.

The US publication Wall Street Journal said Smith is one of the candidates being considered for the post that Diamond vacated.

Smith joined ANZ in October 2007. He has a rolling 12-month contract with ANZ, which meant either Smith or the bank can terminate the contract. ANZ is Australia’s fourth-largest bank.

Although no formal offer has been made, industry observers say that Smith’s possible resignation may pose a major setback for the bank. ANZ is currently gaining grounds with its Asian operations.

Smith may also stand to lose close to $5 million in investments if he resigns from his ANZ post.

According to sources, Barclays has tapped Spencer Stuart to look for a new chief executive. Barclays expects the executive search to be completed within the next three months. Spencer Stuart is also required to submit a shortlist within the next two weeks.

Spencer Stuart is a global executive-search firm.

Despite talks of Smith’s recruitment, ANZ has declined to make any comment. Smith is also reportedly on leave.

Industry observers are not surprised that Smith is being considered for the post. Aside from his solid track record in banking, Australian banks have been regarded positively because they remain relatively unaffected by the global financial crisis.

Speculations also said Bill Winters is also being considered. Winters was JP Morgan’s co-chief exective for its investment banking division.