ANZ appeals Federal Court continuous disclosure finding

The news: ANZ will appeal a Federal Court finding that the bank breached its continuous disclosure obligations during an institutional share placement in 2015.

The numbers: In a case launched by ASIC, the Federal Court found ANZ failed to notify the Australian Securities Exchange that between $754 million and $790 million of the $2.5 billion in shares offered in the placement were to be snapped up by the bank's underwriters. ANZ has been fined $900,000 over the breach.

The context: ANZ has not publicly stated its grounds for appeal nor denied the breach took place. The penalty was near the maximum $1 million fine available for a single breach of continuous disclosure obligations by a company in 2015.

What they said: "Given the importance of continuous disclosure laws, there is benefit for financial market participants in obtaining guidance from the Full Federal Court," ANZ Chief Risk Officer Kevin Corbally said in a statement.