...if it takes 5 years to see the fruits of this acquisition,...

...if it takes 5 years to see the fruits of this acquisition, the financing landscape can look rather different in 5-10 years. Already BNPL companies like Block and even Apple are considering getting into the mortgage markets- in 5 years, the Gen Zs will probably not want to take a mortgage from the boomer banks, they get it from BNPL and fintechs all with computer keystrokes or from the mobile. Bank branches could even be dinosaurs. And it won't surprise me that existing Big 4 banks could face the same issues that the big energy companies like AGL/Origin face as the industry face transformation.

In 5-10 years Buy and Hold shareholders of Big Banks could see a different market structure and the oligopolistic positions they once held could be diluted...if they do not reinvent themselves quickly. Buying another second tier bank is just buying customers. It is not preparing for changes in how future banking will be done. Except for dividends, banks across the world have not been providing capital growth over the past 5 years (10 years in Europe), what more to expect as we head towards recession and who knows what systemic risk event can could eventuate and a possible new paradigm for future banking. Plus housing holds the key for banks - despite rising housing prices over the years, their stock prices had stagnated, what with a housing downturn ?

Slow ANZ-Suncorp deal synergies add risk: analysts
James Eyers
Jul 19, 2022 – 1.21pm

Analysts declared the $4.9 billion price tag for Suncorp Bank fair and reckon extra scale in Queensland will help ANZ compete in the mortgage market, but with the lender still building a new IT system they are concerned about how long the financial benefits will take.
With ANZ raising $3.5 billion before its shares resume trading on Thursday morning, a key focus for investors is the high integration costs - $680 million over five years - compared to the expected “synergies” of $260 million a year that will take six years to fully emerge.