Westpac is off 4.5% over the same period. Trading in their shares was suspended Monday. The acquisition of St. George would make Westpac, which currently has a market value of 49 billion Australian dollars ($45.89 billion), the largest bank in Australia by market capitalization, eclipsing Commonwealth Bank of Australia, which has a market value of about 58 billion Australian dollars ($54.33 billion). The combined entity would have about 500 billion Australian dollars ($468 billion) in assets, ranking it second behind National Australia Bank. St. George, which has a lower credit rating than its larger rivals, has been struggling with soaring funding costs in the debt markets. Earlier in the month, it had to pay more than 10 times the margin it paid a year ago for a debt issue. St.