K62 Finance

Hayne casualties in limbo a year after the inquiry

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Original article by James Frost, Aleks Vickovich, James Eyers, Sally Patten
The Australian Financial Review – Page: 1 & 10 : 31-Jan-20

Terry McMaster claims the Hayne royal commission, which handed down its final report in February 2019, was a waste of time and money. McMaster, the former head of Dover Financial, is the only person to be convicted as a direct consequence of the commission thus far. A number of high-profile executives left the financial services sector after appearing before the commission, or being implicated in evidence presented to it; only a small number of those individuals have returned to corporate life. One witness has stated they felt they were abandoned by their company after appearing before the commission, while some hold the view that women wore the burden of the commission disproportionately to men.

CORPORATES
DOVER FINANCIAL ADVISERS PTY LTD, AMP LIMITED – ASX AMP, NATIONAL AUSTRALIA BANK LIMITED – ASX NAB, IOOF HOLDINGS LIMITED – ASX IFL, COMMONWEALTH BANK OF AUSTRALIA – ASX CBA, WESTPAC BANKING CORPORATION – ASX WBC

Consensus shifts to April cut after NAB relents

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Original article by Sarah Turner
The Australian Financial Review – Page: 30 : 31-Jan-20

The futures market is currently pricing in a 10.4 per cent chance that the Reserve Bank of Australia will reduce the cash rate on 4 February, compared with a 53 per cent chance in mid-January. National Australia Bank’s chief economist Alan Oster previously expected a rate cut in February, and while he still believes that the RBA should so, he says the next rate cut is now likely to be in April. The other major banks also expect an official interest rate cut in April.

CORPORATES
NATIONAL AUSTRALIA BANK LIMITED – ASX NAB, RESERVE BANK OF AUSTRALIA

Home loan customers reward ME Bank with highest satisfaction rating

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Original article by Roy Morgan
Market Research Update – Page: Online : 30-Jan-20

New Roy Morgan banking data shows that ME Bank has the leading satisfaction rating (91.4%) among home loan customers. ING remains in top position among non-home loan customers with a rating of 89.8%. Among home loan customers, ME Bank is followed by ING (89.3%), Bendigo Bank (83.3%) and Bankwest (77.1%). For non-home loan customers, leader ING is followed by Bendigo Bank (87.8%), ME Bank (83.5%) and Suncorp (81.0%). The institution with the largest discrepancy between home loan and non-home loan customer satisfaction is Suncorp, where the satisfaction rating among home loan customers (72.6%) is more than 8 percentage points below its rating among non-home loan customers (81.0%). The ratings are taken from the Roy Morgan Single Source survey, compiled by in-depth face-to-face interviews with around 50,000 Australians each year in their homes.

CORPORATES
ROY MORGAN LIMITED, ME BANK, ING BANK (AUSTRALIA) LIMITED, BENDIGO BANK, BANKWEST, SUNCORP BANK

Bank bashing hurts economy

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Original article by Richard Gluyas
The Australian – Page: 15 & 19 : 24-Jan-20

Former ANZ Bank CEO John McFarlane will succeed Lindsay Maxsted as Westpac’s chairman on 2 April. McFarlane has warned that continued criticism of the banking sector and policies such as the bank levy will affect the industry’s returns and ultimately impact on the economy via lower government revenue. His appointment follows Westpac’s alleged large-scale breach of anti-money laundering laws, which led to the departure of Maxsted and CEO Brian Hartzer.

CORPORATES
WESTPAC BANKING CORPORATION – ASX WBC, AUSTRALIA AND NEW ZEALAND BANKING GROUP LIMITED – ASX ANZ, AUSTRALIA. ATTORNEY-GENERAL’S DEPT. AUSTRALIAN TRANSACTION REPORTS AND ANALYSIS CENTRE

Veteran banker to chair Westpac

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Original article by John Durie, Joyce Moullakis
The Australian – Page: 15 & 16 : 23-Jan-20

Former ANZ Bank CEO John McFarlane is set to succeed Lindsay Maxsted as Westpac’s chairman. Maxsted will step down ahead of schedule in response to the bank’s breach of anti-money laundering laws. Sources have indicated that McFarlane was chosen due to factors such as his knowledge of the retail banking sector, his reputation as a ‘change agent’ and the fact that he has no prior links to Westpac. The major bank has yet to appoint a permanent successor to former CEO Brian Hartzer.

CORPORATES
WESTPAC BANKING CORPORATION – ASX WBC, AUSTRALIA AND NEW ZEALAND BANKING GROUP LIMITED – ASX ANZ, AUSTRALIA. ATTORNEY-GENERAL’S DEPT. AUSTRALIAN TRANSACTION REPORTS AND ANALYSIS CENTRE

NAB hit with class action on super rip-off

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Original article by Aleks Vickovich
The Australian Financial Review – Page: 12 & 17 : 22-Jan-20

A class action lawsuit will contend that National Australia Bank’s superannuation customers incurred substantial losses due to the bank’s tardiness in shifting them to a MySuper product. Law firm Maurice Blackburn will argue that NAB subsidiaries MLC Nominees and NULIS Nominees breached their duties as superannuation trustees by keeping customers in funds that had higher fees than MySuper products. The allegations were first raised before the Hayne royal commission in 2018.

CORPORATES
NATIONAL AUSTRALIA BANK LIMITED – ASX NAB, MAURICE BLACKBURN PTY LTD, MLC NOMINEES, NULIS NOMINEES (AUSTRALIA) LIMITED, AUSTRALIA. ROYAL COMMISSION INTO MISCONDUCT IN THE BANKING, SUPERANNUATION AND FINANCIAL SERVICES INDUSTRY

Rate cuts not working says CBA economist

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Original article by Sarah Turner
The Australian Financial Review – Page: 27 : 22-Jan-20

National Australia Bank’s chief economist Alan Oster says the Reserve Bank needs to reduce official interest rates twice in 2020 in order to stimulate the economy. He expects the first rate cut to be in February. The Commonwealth Bank’s chief economist Michael Blythe also anticipates a rate cut in February, although he opposes such a move. Blythe contends that the three rate cuts in 2019 have not been effective, and they have resulted in outcomes such as a decline in consumer confidence.

CORPORATES
NATIONAL AUSTRALIA BANK LIMITED – ASX NAB, RESERVE BANK OF AUSTRALIA, COMMONWEALTH BANK OF AUSTRALIA – ASX CBA

Gen Z threatens $1.7b of bank card revenue

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Original article by James Eyers
The Australian Financial Review – Page: 21 : 17-Jan-20

Macquarie Group expects a further decline in credit card lending and revenue over the medium-term, as consumers continue to embrace alternative payment methods. Credit cards and payments account for some $1.7bn of major Australian banks’ revenue, and Macquarie believes that up to 45 per cent of this could be at risk due to the growth of ‘buy now, pay later platforms’ and other payment solutions. German notes that banks are also facing growing competition from fintechs in the foreign exchange market.

CORPORATES
MACQUARIE GROUP LIMITED – ASX MQG

Meet Macquarie: The $50bn investment bank

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Original article by Joyce Moullakis
The Australian – Page: 15 & 21 : 17-Jan-20

Macquarie Group’s shares closed 1.4 per cent higher at a record $143.47 on 16 January; this compares with just $14.75 in early 2009, as the global financial crisis took its toll on investment banks. Macquarie now boasts a market capitalisation of $50.85bn, while it has more than $560bn worth of asset under management. Macquarie posted a profit of $1.46bn for the six months to September, an increase of 11 per cent, although CEO Shemara Wikramanayake has flagged a lower full-year profit than previously.

CORPORATES
MACQUARIE GROUP LIMITED – ASX MQG

RBA warns on buy now, pay later dangers

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Original article by Gerard Cockburn
The Australian – Page: 14 : 16-Jan-20

Documents released under Freedom of Information laws shows that the Reserve Bank of Australia had expressed concern about the growth of ‘buy now, pay later’ platforms in March 2019. The internal memorandum cautioned that the rapid growth in such platforms is beginning to present a risk to financial stability, and noted that some consumers may not fully understand the risks associated with these platforms. However, the central bank also concluded that buy now, pay later services can be more beneficial to some consumers than credit cards.

CORPORATES
RESERVE BANK OF AUSTRALIA, AFTERPAY LIMITED – ASX APT, ZIP CO LIMITED – ASX Z1P, GOLDMAN SACHS AUSTRALIA PTY LTD