BANKS AND BANKING – AUSTRALIA

Investors demand action by Westpac

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Original article by Joyce Moullakis
The Australian – Page: 17 & 21 : 26-Nov-19

Nathan Parkin of Ethical Partners Funds Management contends that some at a high level at Westpac needs to be held accountable for the financial penalties that will arise from its massive breach of anti-money laundering laws. Meanwhile, one of Westpac’s 20 largest shareholders believes that CEO Brian Hartzer will not be to able to remain at the helm in the wake of the scandal. Westpac’s share price has fallen by 8.8 per cent since the scandal was revealed.

CORPORATES
WESTPAC BANKING CORPORATION – ASX WBC, ETHICAL PARTNERS FUNDS MANAGEMENT PTY LTD, AUSTRALIA. ATTORNEY-GENERAL’S DEPT. AUSTRALIAN TRANSACTION REPORTS AND ANALYSIS CENTRE, PLATO INVESTMENT MANAGEMENT LIMITED, OWNERSHIP MATTERS PTY LTD, AUSTRALIAN COUNCIL OF SUPERANNUATION INVESTORS INCORPORATED, INSTITUTIONAL SHAREHOLDER SERVICES INCORPORATED, NORGES BANK INVESTMENT MANAGEMENT, BLACKROCK INCORPORATED, THE VANGUARD GROUP INCORPORATED

Stay calm, this is no Enron

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Original article by Peter Van Onselen, Michael Roddan
The Australian – Page: 1 & 2 : 26-Nov-19

Westpac CEO Brian Hartzer has told his executive team that there is no need to "overcook" the money-laundering and child exploitation scandal that has embroiled the bank. He has argued that it is not a major issue for "people in mainstream Australia". Sources have also indicated that Hartzer has told executives to focus on issues such as lifting Westpac’s net promoter score and writing more home loans. He is also said to have downplayed any comparisons to Enron and Lehman Brothers.

CORPORATES
WESTPAC BANKING CORPORATION – ASX WBC, AUSTRALIA. DEPT OF HOME AFFAIRS, AUSTRALIAN SECURITIES AND INVESTMENTS COMMISSION, AUSTRALIA. ATTORNEY-GENERAL’S DEPT. AUSTRALIAN TRANSACTION REPORTS AND ANALYSIS CENTRE, MOODY’S INVESTORS SERVICE INCORPORATED, VICTORIA. DEPT OF TREASURY AND FINANCE

$1bn scandal hits Westpac

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Original article by Joyce Moullakis, Greg Brown
The Australian – Page: 1 & 8 : 21-Nov-19

Prime Minister Scott Morrison says banks must "lift their game" in the wake of revelations that Westpac has been charged with more 23 million breaches of anti-money laundering and counter-terrorism financing laws. Amongst other things, Austrac’s statement of claim alleges that Westpac failed to conduct due diligence on 12 customers linked to child exploitation in the Philippines. Brett Le Mesurier of Shaw & Partners says Westpac may face a larger penalty than the Commonwealth Bank’s record $700m fine in 2018 for more than 53,000 breaches of financial crime laws. Westpac could potentially incur fines in excess of $1bn.

CORPORATES
WESTPAC BANKING CORPORATION – ASX WBC, AUSTRALIA. DEPT OF THE PRIME MINISTER AND CABINET, COMMONWEALTH BANK OF AUSTRALIA – ASX CBA, AUSTRALIA. ATTORNEY-GENERAL’S DEPT. AUSTRALIAN TRANSACTION REPORTS AND ANALYSIS CENTRE, NATIONAL AUSTRALIA BANK LIMITED – ASX NAB

Wealthier Australians are less satisfied with their bank

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Original article by Roy Morgan
Market Research Update – Page: Online : 20-Nov-19

Satisfaction levels with the banking industry are related to an individual’s level of wealth, new research from Roy Morgan shows – with the wealthiest 30% of Australians less likely to be satisfied with their banking relationships (75.4%) than the middle 40% (80.1%) or the bottom 30% (84.7%). The wealth-linked difference in banking satisfaction levels has grown more extreme over time. In 2013 the satisfaction level of the wealthiest Australians was 80.8% and that of the poorest Australians was 82.8%, a gap of just 2%. This figure has more than quadrupled to 9.3%. Six years ago there was no significant difference between the satisfaction of the middle 40% and that of the wealthiest 30%, but these levels have also grown steadily apart, opening up a gap of 4.6%. These insights come from Australia’s most extensive, longest study of consumer financial behaviour. Running continuously for more than 20 years, it involves over 50,000 in-depth, face-to-face interviews in respondents’ homes each year.

CORPORATES
ROY MORGAN LIMITED

Fintechs slam CBA alerts as misleading

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Original article by James Eyers
The Australian Financial Review – Page: 15 & 20 : 18-Nov-19

Raiz Invest has criticised the Commonwealth Bank of Australia for warning customers about the security risks associated with the use of fintech apps. CBA customers who use the Raiz app recently received a warning that their NetBank account had been compromised, and cautioned against sharing account log-in details with third parties. Raiz CEO George Lucas says the CBA alert was misleading and may even constitute an abuse of market power. Fintech Australia’s Rebecca Schot-Guppy says CBA’s actions are concerning given that the open banking regime is slated to begin in early 2020.

CORPORATES
COMMONWEALTH BANK OF AUSTRALIA – ASX CBA, RAIZ INVEST LIMITED – ASX RZI, FINTECH AUSTRALIA PTY LTD, AUSTRALIAN COMPETITION AND CONSUMER COMMISSION, ZIP CO LIMITED – ASX Z1P, AMP LIMITED – ASX AMP, AUSTRALIAN SECURITIES AND INVESTMENTS COMMISSION, WESTPAC BANKING CORPORATION – ASX WBC, NATIONAL AUSTRALIA BANK LIMITED – ASX NAB

NAB, ANZ to be grilled over wealth exits

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Original article by Aleks Vickovich
The Australian Financial Review – Page: 20 : 15-Nov-19

A federal parliamentary committee is examining the financial services sector’s response to the Hayne royal commission. ANZ Bank CEO Shayne Elliott and National Australia Bank chairman and acting CEO Philip Chronican will appear before the committee on 15 November. Shadow assistant treasurer Andrew Leigh, who is the committee’s deputy chairman, says he is concerned about the amount of time the two banks are taking to divest their wealth management units; he says the general public expects the divestments to proceed.

CORPORATES
AUSTRALIA AND NEW ZEALAND BANKING GROUP LIMITED – ASX ANZ, NATIONAL AUSTRALIA BANK LIMITED – ASX NAB, COMMONWEALTH BANK OF AUSTRALIA – ASX CBA

Loans double at non-banks as majors slide

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Original article by Aleks Vickovich
The Australian Financial Review – Page: 18 : 12-Nov-19

Australia’s four major banks and their subsidiaries experienced a 10 per cent fall in market share in business lending and equipment finance in 2018-19, according to the inaugural business lending index report, put together by mortgage aggregator FAST. FAST Group CEO Brendan Wright says the ability of the major banks to service the demands of business customers is being hampered by distractions and regulatory hurdles, and that non-bank players are taking advantage of this situation.

CORPORATES
FAST GROUP, NATIONAL AUSTRALIA BANK LIMITED – ASX NAB

First home buyer risk riles banks

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Original article by John Kehoe
The Australian Financial Review – Page: 1 & 8 : 11-Nov-19

Major banks are doubtful that the federal government’s scheme to assist first-home buyers will start on its proposed date of 1 January. The scheme, announced during the final days of the May election campaign, will see the government provide up to 10,000 first-home buyers each year with free lenders’ mortgage insurance for people with deposits of as little as five per cent and less than 20 per cent. The big banks want the ability to charge higher interest rates for participants in the scheme, claiming that they will be a greater risk because of the low deposits involved.

CORPORATES
AUSTRALIA AND NEW ZEALAND BANKING GROUP LIMITED – ASX ANZ, COMMONWEALTH BANK OF AUSTRALIA – ASX CBA, WESTPAC BANKING CORPORATION – ASX WBC, NATIONAL AUSTRALIA BANK LIMITED – ASX NAB

Banks, super face new round of compo costs

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Original article by Joyce Moullakis
The Australian – Page: 21 : 7-Nov-19

Law firm Minter Ellison has warned that banks and wealth managers could face additional customer remediation costs if Westpac does not appeal against a recent judgment regarding the provision of financial advice. Minter Ellison partner Andrew Bradley says the Federal Court’s decision to overturn a judgment in favour of Westpac could also prompt more class actions in the financial services sector. The case centred on the distinction between general and personal advice.

CORPORATES
WESTPAC BANKING CORPORATION – ASX WBC, MINTER ELLISON, FEDERAL COURT OF AUSTRALIA, AUSTRALIAN SECURITIES AND INVESTMENTS COMMISSION, HERBERT SMITH FREEHILLS PTY LTD

More Westpac pain ahead as dividends cut

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Original article by Joyce Moullakis
The Australian – Page: 17 & 21 : 5-Nov-19

Westpac has posted cash earnings of $6.85bn for 2018-19, which is 15 per cent lower than previously. Its net interest margin fell 10 basis points to 2.12 per cent in the year to 30 September, while the final dividend has been reduced from $0.94 per share to $0.80. Westpac has also advised that its customer remediation costs have totalled $1.9bn pre-tax since 2017, and CEO Brian Hartzer has warned of the potential for further compensation and litigation. Meanwhile, a $2.5bn capital raising will lift Westpac’s common equity tier one capital ratio to around 11.25 per cent.

CORPORATES
WESTPAC BANKING CORPORATION – ASX WBC, AUSTRALIA. ATTORNEY-GENERAL’S DEPT. AUSTRALIAN TRANSACTION REPORTS AND ANALYSIS CENTRE, MARTIN CURRIE INVESTMENT MANAGEMENT LIMITED, UBS HOLDINGS PTY LTD