UPDATE 1-ANZ plans to hire over 100 private bankers in Asia

* Private bank has booking centres in Singapore and HK

* ANZ aims to become "super regional bank" in Asia-Pac

(Adds details, background)

By Kevin Lim

SINGAPORE, Aug 14 (Reuters) - Australia and New Zealand Banking Group Ltd (ANZ.AX), Australia's fourth largest lender, plans to hire over 100 private bankers in Asia over the next 18 months, continuing its aggressive thrust into the region.

ANZ last week agreed to pay $550 million to buy some Asian units from British lender Royal Bank of Scotland (RBS.L). The firm also said it aimed to have a large presence in India and China. [ID:nSYD460598].

"Over the course of the next 18 months, ANZ Private Wealth intends to recruit upwards from 100 senior private bankers," a bank spokeswoman told Reuters.

"ANZ aims to become a super-regional bank in Asia Pacific," she added in response to queries about a spate of job advertisements placed by the bank in Singapore newspapers in recent weeks.

The spokeswoman could not immediately provide a breakdown by country for the new hires, or say how many people the private bank employed in Asia currently.

ANZ's private bank has regional booking centres in Hong Kong and Singapore, as well as onshore private banking capabilities in Indonesia through ANZ Panin Private Bank.

The operations appear relatively small as ANZ does not appear on Asian private banking league tables seen by Reuters.

News of ANZ's hiring plans come less than a week after Standard Chartered (STAN.L) said it intended to hire 850 relationship managers for its "priority banking" business across Asia in the next 12-18 months, signalling a recovery in the region's wealth management business. [ID:nSP309558]

Banks that had laid off private bankers as recently as a few months ago included Barclays (BARC.L) and UBS (UBSN.VX).

Private banks cater to wealthy individuals who have assets of at least $1 million to invest. Priority banking services are aimed at individuals who typically have investible assets of more than $100,000 with the bank.

ANZ said on Aug 4 it will buy RBS's retail, wealth and commercial operations in Taiwan, Singapore, Indonesia and Hong Kong, as well as the British lender's institutional businesses in Taiwan, the Philippines and Vietnam. (Reporting by Kevin Lim; Editing by Lincoln Feast)