K: Financial and Insurance Services

RBA to wait and see before February rate cut

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Original article by David Rogers
The Australian – Page: 18 : 18-Dec-19

Financial markets have priced in a 62 per cent of an official interest rate cut in February, following the release of the federal government’s Mid-Year Economic and Fiscal Outlook. The minutes from the central bank’s latest board meeting indicate that it will assess the economic outlook before deciding whether to make any change to monetary policy at its first meeting for 2020. The minutes noted that some downside risks to the global economic outlook have receded in recent weeks.

CORPORATES
RESERVE BANK OF AUSTRALIA

NAB to face legal pain over fee rort

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Original article by Michael Roddan
The Australian – Page: 13 & 14 : 18-Dec-19

National Australia Bank’s annual general meeting on 18 December will be overshadowed by allegations that it engaged in unconscionable conduct. The Australian Securities & Investments Commission has filed a statement of claim in which it outlines some 8,700 instances in which NAB is alleged to have charged fees for services that were not provided between December 2013 and February 2019. Amongst other things, ASIC also alleges that NAB failed to issue adequate product disclosure statements. NAB has indicated that it has already paid $37.8m in compensation to customers who were affected by the fee-for-no-service scandal.

CORPORATES
NATIONAL AUSTRALIA BANK LIMITED – ASX NAB, AUSTRALIAN SECURITIES AND INVESTMENTS COMMISSION, WESTPAC BANKING CORPORATION – ASX WBC, AMP LIMITED – ASX AMP

Mega super funds to dominate economy

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Original article by Glenda Korporaal
The Australian – Page: 13 & 15 : 16-Dec-19

Rice Warner forecasts that Australia’s superannuation industry will have $7trn worth of assets under management by 2034, compared with $2.7trn at present. The firm also expects the sector to eventually be dominated by a handful of ‘megafunds’. Rice Warner forecasts that there will be at least nine super funds with assets exceeding $100bn within five years, and at least 12 funds with more than $200bn worth of assets by 2034. AustralianSuper’s assets are expected to rise from $150bn to $325bn over the next five years.

CORPORATES
RICE WARNER ACTUARIES PTY LTD, AUSTRALIANSUPER PTY LTD, CONSTRUCTION AND BUILDING UNIONS’ SUPERANNUATION FUND, HOST-PLUS, WESTPAC BANKING CORPORATION – ASX WBC, AUSTRALIA. ATTORNEY-GENERAL’S DEPT. AUSTRALIAN TRANSACTION REPORTS AND ANALYSIS CENTRE, QSUPER LIMITED, SUNSUPER PTY LTD, AMP SUPERANNUATION LIMITED, VICSUPER PTY LTD, FIRST STATE SUPER, NATIONAL AUSTRALIA BANK LIMITED – ASX NAB, UNISUPER LIMITED, COMMONWEALTH BANK OF AUSTRALIA – ASX CBA, BT FINANCIAL GROUP PTY LTD, IOOF HOLDINGS LIMITED – ASX IFL, ONEPATH AUSTRALIA LIMITED

ASX creates the Aussie Nasdaq index

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Original article by Paul Smith
The Australian Financial Review – Page: 14 & 16 : 16-Dec-19

Stock exchange operator ASX Limited will launch the S&P All Technology Index in February. It will be based on the Nasdaq Composite Index, and will offer an alternative listing option for technology companies whose capitalisation is too small for the US index. The ASX’s Max Cunningham says the new index should raise the profile of smaller technology companies. The existing S&P/ASX 200 Information Technology index covers just 13 stocks.

CORPORATES
ASX LIMITED – ASX ASX, STANDARD AND POOR’S FINANCIAL SERVICES LLC, NASDAQ COMPOSITE INDEX, STANDARD AND POOR’S ASX 200 INFORMATION TECHNOLOGY INDEX, WISETECH GLOBAL LIMITED – ASX WTC, APPEN LIMITED – ASX APX, XERO LIMITED – ASX XRO, COMPUTERSHARE LIMITED – ASX CPU, AFTERPAY TOUCH GROUP LIMITED – ASX APT, ALTIUM LIMITED – ASX ALU, LINK ADMINISTRATION HOLDINGS LIMITED – ASX LNK, NITRO SOFTWARE LIMITED – ASX NTO, TYRO PAYMENTS LIMITED – ASX TYR, LATITUDE FINANCIAL GROUP LIMITED, RETAIL ZOO PTY LTD, PROPERTYGURU LIMITED

Westpac faces Philippines probe

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Original article by Michael Roddan
The Australian – Page: 17 & 21 : 11-Dec-19

Westpac’s money-laundering scandal has deepened, with the allegations regarding payments linked to child exploitation to be investigated by regulators in The Philippines. The nation’s Justice Secretary Menardo Guevarra has indicated that its Inter-Agency Council Against Trafficking is investigation the allegations in partnership with anti-money-laundering agencies in both Australia and The Philippines. The scandal is likely to dominate Westpac’s annual meeting on 12 December.

CORPORATES
WESTPAC BANKING CORPORATION – ASX WBC, PHILIPPINES. DEPT OF JUSTICE, PHILIPPINES. ANTI-MONEY LAUNDERING COUNCIL, AUSTRALIA. ATTORNEY-GENERAL’S DEPT. AUSTRALIAN TRANSACTION REPORTS AND ANALYSIS CENTRE

RBA chief has confidence in consumers

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Original article by David Rogers, James Glynn
The Australian – Page: 23 : 11-Dec-19

George Tharenou of UBS says the Reserve Bank of Australia is likely to reduce the cash rate twice in the first half of 2020, to a record low of 0.25 per cent. He adds that the federal government’s mid-year Budget update is unlikely to include any "material" fiscal stimulus. Meanwhile, RBA governor Philip Lowe concedes that it is taking longer than usual for consumers to spend the extra cash from the three interest rate cuts in 2019 and the federal government’s income tax offset. However, he expects consumer spending to increase.

CORPORATES
RESERVE BANK OF AUSTRALIA, UBS HOLDINGS PTY LTD

Westpac open to settlement

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Original article by Michael Roddan
The Australian – Page: 17 & 21 : 10-Dec-19

The Federal Court has been told that Westpac and Austrac could potentially finalise a statement of agreed facts with regard to the bank’s breach of anti-money laundering laws by late February. Westpac has also advised that it will not contest the bulk of the 23 million civil charges that it is facing, which could allow the case to be settled quickly. Westpac is also under scrutiny by the Australian Securities & Investments Commission and the Australian Prudential Regulation Authority, while the bank could face a board spill at its annual meeting.

CORPORATES
WESTPAC BANKING CORPORATION – ASX WBC, AUSTRALIA. ATTORNEY-GENERAL’S DEPT. AUSTRALIAN TRANSACTION REPORTS AND ANALYSIS CENTRE, AUSTRALIAN SECURITIES AND INVESTMENTS COMMISSION, AUSTRALIAN PRUDENTIAL REGULATION AUTHORITY, FEDERAL COURT OF AUSTRALIA

Banks struggle despite RBNZ retreat: analysts

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Original article by Cliona O’Dowd
The Australian – Page: 20 : 9-Dec-19

Jonathan Mott of UBS says the outlook for Australia’s banks remains "very challenging", despite the fact that they will be treated more favourably than expected under the Reserve Bank of New Zealand’s new capital requirements. The central bank will phase in the new capital rules over a longer time-frame, while the banks will able to hold a wider range of securities as tier-one capital. Several analysts expect the new capital rules to result in the banks receiving lower dividend payouts from their New Zealand subsidiaries.

CORPORATES
RESERVE BANK OF NEW ZEALAND, UBS HOLDINGS PTY LTD, COMMONWEALTH BANK OF AUSTRALIA – ASX CBA, WESTPAC BANKING CORPORATION – ASX WBC, AUSTRALIA AND NEW ZEALAND BANKING GROUP LIMITED – ASX ANZ, NATIONAL AUSTRALIA BANK LIMITED – ASX NAB, CITIGROUP PTY LTD, MORGAN STANLEY AUSTRALIA LIMITED

Humbled Westpac faces shareholder anger

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Original article by Glenda Korporaal
The Australian – Page: 17 & 20 : 9-Dec-19

Some 64 per cent of votes cast at Westpac’s 2018 annual meeting rejected its remuneration report. The bank is likely to incur a second ‘strike’ at its 2019 annual meeting on 12 December, while the re-election of director Peter Marriott is uncertain in the wake of the scandal over breaches of anti-money laundering laws. However, Westpac is likely to avoid a resolution calling for a board spill. The Australian Shareholders’ Association and proxy adviser ISS will vote against the remuneration report, although the ASA will oppose any push to spill the board.

CORPORATES
WESTPAC BANKING CORPORATION – ASX WBC, AUSTRALIAN SHAREHOLDERS’ ASSOCIATION, INSTITUTIONAL SHAREHOLDER SERVICES INCORPORATED, OWNERSHIP MATTERS PTY LTD, CGI GLASS LEWIS PTY LTD, AUSTRALIAN COUNCIL OF SUPERANNUATION INVESTORS INCORPORATED, AUSTRALIA. ATTORNEY-GENERAL’S DEPT. AUSTRALIAN TRANSACTION REPORTS AND ANALYSIS CENTRE

Health insurance crisis looms

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Original article by Cliona O’Dowd
The Australian – Page: 17 & 18 : 9-Dec-19

Medibank Private’s chief customer officer David Koczkar and NIB Holdings MD Mark Fitzgibbon have stressed the need to reign in rising costs in Australia’s health care system. Private Healthcare Australia CEO Rachel David has warned that smaller private health insurers in particular may not be viable unless reforms are implemented. The federal government has approved a 3.27 per cent increase in Medibank’s premiums for 2020, while NIB and Bupa will lift their premiums by 2.9 per cent and 3.26 per cent respectively.

CORPORATES
MEDIBANK PRIVATE LIMITED – ASX MPL, NIB HOLDINGS LIMITED – ASX NHF, BUPA AUSTRALIA PTY LTD, PRIVATE HEALTHCARE AUSTRALIA LIMITED, AUSTRALIA. DEPT OF HEALTH, AUSTRALIAN PRUDENTIAL REGULATION AUTHORITY, GRATTAN INSTITUTE