The British-based bank Standard Chartered has bought the Grindlays network of branches in South Asia and the Middle East.

It is paying the Australia and New Zealand Banking group (ANZ) $1.3bn in cash.

The development makes Standard Chartered one of the biggest banks in the region.

Standard Chartered has a long-established presence across Asia, but this move means it is now competing to be the biggest foreign bank in several countries, including India, Pakistan and Bangladesh.

Strenghtening position

This is Standard's biggest takeover yet, and chief executive Rana Talwar said this would probably be the last one in South Asia.

Instead it will be looking to strengthen its position in important East Asian markets including Taiwan and Thailand.

That in itself is a sign of how far the bank has now come.

Since the appointment of Indian-born Mr Talwar in 1998, the bank has focused on Asia's recovering economies.

ANZ pulls out

Grindlays is a respected name across the region with most of its 870,000 customers in India - its network of branches in villages means it is more like an Indian bank than a foreign one.

But in recent years ANZ has struggled to squeeze out profits, after making heavy provisions for bad debts.

However, Standard Chartered said that Grindlays made around $100m in the past few years.

Analysts say ANZ is getting a decent price for what had been a problem business.

In return the move allows ANZ to focus more on markets closer to home.

As for consumers - they will see one less big competitor among the foreign banks - but the takeover underlines Standard Chartered's commitment to being a dominant force in the region.