What you need to know:

• CommBank-owned ASB has appointed The Monkeys as its new creative agency.
• The NZ bank is the foundation client for the agency and Accenture Interactive, as it opens its doors in the country.

ASB has appointed The Monkeys and Accenture Interactive as its new agency of record with the bank becoming the agency’s foundation client in New Zealand.

The appointment follows a competitive pitch process that saw expressions of interest from several brand, marketing and digital agencies.

The Monkeys and Accenture Interactive will work alongside existing media and search agency partners to handle a number of services for ASB, including creative, strategy, digital experience and innovation.

ASB provides a range of financial services including retail, business and rural banking, funds management and insurance. Last year the bank closed several physical branches and began hiring for 150 new roles to provide specialist online support.

ASB's decision ends its partnership with incumbent agency Dentsu Creative (WiTH Collective).

“We are committed to continuing to evolve our award-winning marketing automation capability to deliver best in class customer communications. Accenture Interactive is an internationally recognised leader in innovation and the expertise its team brings will help inform the evolution of our marketing, and help us to stay ahead of the curve," ASB Brand & Marketing Practice Lead Shane Evans said.