Latest news with #BigFourBanks
The Guardian
13 hours ago
- Business
- The Guardian
Australia's borrowers may have to wait weeks for Reserve Bank's rate cut to reduce their mortgage
Mortgage rates will slide after the Reserve Bank announced a third interest rate cut of the year – but borrowers with some major banks may have to wait weeks for relief. Lenders have lined up to reduce their rates by 0.25%, with 20 banks – including each of the big four – announcing on Tuesday that they will pass on the cuts but only two of them doing so immediately. The third rate cut of the year will deliver a borrower with a $750,000 mortgage a further $111 off their monthly interest payments, once their lender passes it on, according to Canstar. Only two of the banks to announce a cut on Tuesday delivered it the same day, leaving many customers waiting until late August for relief. Mortgage holders at the four biggest banks are charged an additional $7.5m collectively in interest per day when mortgage rates remain 0.25% higher, Finder analysis has found. NAB said it would pass on the cut 13 days after the RBA's move, longer than the 10 days it waited to hand down May's cut. Westpac announced it would wait 14 days to pass on the 0.25% cut, while Commonwealth Bank and ANZ will wait 10 days, as each did in May. One first home buyer, Andrew Giraldi, watched his banks' interest rate moves after the RBA's announcements and was glad to see his lender, Macquarie, commit to passing on the rate cut within three days. Sign up: AU Breaking News email 'My good mate is still waiting for NAB,' he said. The 28-year-old and his partner, Joanna, bought a flat in February with a 6.19% variable rate from Macquarie, which will on Friday fall to 5.44%. Each cut has saved them about $130 a month in repayments, with all three cuts amounting to nearly $400 saved each month compared with February. They have saved nearly $30 a week as Macquarie cuts rates within three days instead of 10. The couple made sacrifices to buy a home in Ryde, midway between Sydney's CBD and Parramatta, even selling a car Giraldi had saved for and worked on for seven years. 'Every dollar makes a difference,' Giraldi said. 'That $30 could be worth double, triple that in the long run. 'I think it would take a few quickly passed-down rate cuts to get the race car back, but it's hopefully in my line of sights in the distant future.' Variable rates have fallen by the same amount as the RBA's cash rate since the beginning of the year, despite the delays. Complex systems and high numbers of customers contributed to delays in banks passing on interest rate changes, according to Sally Tindall, the data insights director at Canstar. 'It is a little bit frustrating, for their variable-rate customers who really just want that relief as quickly as they can get it,' she said. Sign up to Breaking News Australia Get the most important news as it breaks after newsletter promotion If banks passed Tuesday's rate cut on in full, the average rate for all variable owner-occupier loans would fall from its June level of 5.79% to 5.54%. CommBank and Westpac's lowest variable rates fell to 5.34%, while about 30 lenders will offer variable rates of 5.25% or lower by the end of August, Canstar estimated. Just one bank, Police Credit Union, was offering a 4.99% variable rate after the bank's decision, which it has offered since July, though Tindall said more lenders could offer sub-5% variable rates by the end of August. 'A variable rate that starts with a four is a fantastic marketing play, and so you might find that some lenders break that 5% barrier in order to attract new business,' she said. It would take one more rate cut to see a crowd of banks offer rates as low as 5% and two more for major banks to reach that level, Tindall said. The RBA governor on Tuesday flagged two or three more rate cuts were on the table if inflation continued to ease. Short-term fixed-rate loans have offered even lower rates than variable loans since September 2024, with 17 lenders offering a fixed rate under 5% ahead of Tuesday's cut. The month leading up to the RBA's decision saw 20 banks cut one or more of their fixed home-loan rates, Canstar's database indicated. Low fixed rates may not be the best loan but instead a sign of better deals to come, according to Richard Brown, owner of Mortgage Choice Epping. 'The banks are trying to front-run it by reducing their fixed rates … but what that tells most borrowers is that the variable rate's just going to come down even more,' he said. CommBank and Westpac data indicates 99% of new loans since late 2024 have been on variable rates, as borrowers bet on further declines. Easing interest rates have seen homebuyer loans rise almost $40bn from January to July while investor loans have jumped nearly $20bn, APRA data shows.
ABC News
a day ago
- Business
- ABC News
How banks are responding to the Reserve Bank decision to cut interest rates
The Reserve Bank of Australia (RBA) cut the cash rate by 0.25 percentage points at the August monetary policy meeting. That means the RBA's cash rate target is now 3.60 per cent. Here's a breakdown of how Australia's Big Four banks have responded to the decision. We'll be updating this story as information comes through, so check back later if you don't see anything about the bank you're after. The Commonwealth Bank was the first bank to announce the cut in a statement. CBA Retail group executive, Angus Sullivan, said: "With now three rate cuts this year, Australian borrowers are getting some breathing room back in their budgets," he said. "We can see people are responding to lower interest rates in different ways — some are covering everyday costs a little more comfortably, others are getting ahead on their home loans." We are waiting on the ANZ, Westpac and NAB to respond to the news. Here's a list of some of the other major lenders in Australia. Don't see your bank listed here? It's probably worth checking their website and email correspondence, giving them a call or visiting a branch. The federal government's financial guidance website Moneysmart gives advice on this. It says before you switch, you should consider the following:
Daily Mail
21-07-2025
- Business
- Daily Mail
Sacrifice Aussies may need to make if they want to keep using cash
Australians may have to go back to paying fees again for using rival bank ATMs like they did a decade ago if they want to keep having access to cash, a finance expert says. The Big Four banks in 2017 agreed to scrap those $2 fees for customers who used the automatic teller machines of a competitor. While it was regarded as good news, that policy is threatening the future of cash in Australia with very few consumers now using banknotes to pay for everyday goods and services. Australia's key cash-in-transit company Armaguard, owned by billionaire transport magnate Lindsay Fox's family, needs $50million a year in handouts to survive and now federal regulators are proposing Australia have a new minister for cash. In just seven years, the number of ATMs have more than halved, plunging from 13,814 in June 2017 to just 5,476 in June last year, Australian Prudential Regulation Authority data showed. The Commonwealth Bank , Westpac , NAB and ANZ used the abolition of rival ATM fees to take away those cash dispensing machines and squeeze Australia's cash-in-transit companies during contractual negotiations. This has made distributing cash unprofitable with the Big Four banks, supermarket giant Woolworths and retail group Wesfarmers - the owner of hardware chain Bunnings, Kmart and Officeworks - last week announcing they would provide a $25.5million lifeline to Armaguard from July to December. Jason Bryce, the founder of Cash Is Welcome, said Armaguard wouldn't need to be subsidized by the banks and the supermarkets if those old fees for using rival ATMs still existed - and generated $500 million a year in revenue. 'I think it was a bad, short-sighted move - I don't want to prescribe the answers - but the problems date from that decision,' he told Daily Mail Australia. 'There's no doubt the $2 ATM fee for customers of other banks kept the cash distribution system paid for and viable in Australia - since 2017, since that decision, the cash industry has contracted and been under pressure. 'There needs to be some kind of structural change to provide support, go forward, to cover the $50 million-odd per year that Armaguard is now getting. 'There should be no need for $50million a year - the problem has been created by the banks and the supermarkets.' Mr Bryce said the abolition of those rival ATM fees had led to the big banks putting extra pressure cash deliverers, to the point that Spanish group Prosegur in 2023 merged with Armaguard to survive. 'The two big companies have merged into one and that one company is on the verge of bankruptcy,' he said. Peter Fox, the executive chairman of Armaguard, told The Australian Financial Review its 'shortfall in revenue' was 'caused by the four major banks and two retailers which slashed their margins to Armaguard in a period of cut-throat competition'. Commonwealth Bank chief executive Matt Comyn last year admitted the banks were 'very, very aggressive' towards Armaguard. 'The banks drove Armaguard to the brink of bankruptcy,' Mr Bryce said. 'Matt Comyn says the banks underpaid Armaguard for cash-in-transit.' 'It's really up to the banks to pay more. 'So banks now don't really have much of a leg to stand on when they complain about handing over $25million for six months.' The disappearance of major bank ATMs saw the appearance of third-party ATMs that charge $3 fees for use. 'There's less bank-owned ATMs and there's more third-party ATMs that charge $3 or so,' Mr Bryce said. The Council of Financial Regulators - which includes the RBA - and the Australian Competition and Consumer Commission is proposing a new federal minister in charge of cash distribution who would have oversight over a registered entity that would 'provide critical cash services to a significant part of the market'. 'Despite the rise of digital payments, cash remains vital for many Australians, particularly in regional and remote communities,' it said in a consultation paper. 'Cash supports secure, inclusive, and resilient transactions for those who prefer or rely on it.' The federal government last year announced a cash mandate would be coming into force on January 1, 2026 requiring businesses to offer customers a cash option.
Daily Mail
21-07-2025
- Business
- Daily Mail
The major sacrifice Aussies will need to make if they want to keep using cash
Australians may have to go back to paying fees again for using rival bank ATMs like they did a decade ago if they want to keep having access to cash, a finance expert says. The Big Four banks in 2017 agreed to scrap those $2 fees for customers who used the automatic teller machines of a competitor. While it was regarded as good news, that policy is threatening the future of cash in Australia with very few consumers now using banknotes to pay for everyday goods and services. Australia's key cash-in-transit company Armaguard, owned by billionaire transport magnate Lindsay Fox's family, needs $50million a year in handouts to survive and now federal regulators are proposing Australia have a new minister for cash. In just seven years, the number of ATMs have more than halved, plunging from 13,814 in June 2017 to just 5,476 in June last year, Australian Prudential Regulation Authority data showed. The Commonwealth Bank, Westpac, NAB and ANZ used the abolition of rival ATM fees to take away those cash dispensing machines and squeeze Australia's cash-in-transit companies during contractual negotiations. This has made distributing cash unprofitable with the Big Four banks, supermarket giant Woolworths and retail group Wesfarmers - the owner of hardware chain Bunnings, Kmart and Officeworks - last week announcing they would provide a $25.5million lifeline to Armaguard from July to December. 'Major banks and major retailers have reached an agreement with Armaguard to extend their financial contribution for a further six months,' the Australian Banking Association said. Armaguard needs to be subsidised to the tune of $50million a year despite having a 90 per cent share of Australia's cash-in-transit market, with the Reserve Bank estimating cash now makes up just 13 per cent of in-person transactions. Jason Bryce, the founder of Cash Is Welcome, said Armaguard wouldn't need to be subsidised by the banks and the supermarkets if those old fees for using rival ATMs still existed - and generated $500million a year in revenue. 'I think it was a bad, short-sighted move - I don't want to prescribe the answers - but the problems date from that decision,' he told Daily Mail Australia. 'There's no doubt the $2 ATM fee for customers of other banks kept the cash distribution system paid for and viable in Australia - since 2017, since that decision, the cash industry has contracted and been under pressure. 'There needs to be some kind of structural change to provide support, go forward, to cover the $50million-odd per year that Armaguard is now getting. 'There should be no need for $50million a year - the problem has been created by the banks and the supermarkets.' Mr Bryce said the abolition of those rival ATM fees had led to the big banks putting extra pressure cash deliverers, to the point that Spanish group Prosegur in 2023 merged with Armaguard to survive. 'The two big companies have merged into one and that one company is on the verge of bankruptcy,' he said. Peter Fox, the executive chairman of Armaguard, told The Australian Financial Review its 'shortfall in revenue' was 'caused by the four major banks and two retailers which slashed their margins to Armaguard in a period of cut-throat competition'. Commonwealth Bank chief executive Matt Comyn last year admitted the banks were 'very, very aggressive' towards Armaguard. 'The banks drove Armaguard to the brink of bankruptcy,' Mr Bryce said. 'Matt Comyn says the banks underpaid Armaguard for cash-in-transit.' 'It's really up to the banks to pay more. 'So banks now don't really have much of a leg to stand on when they complain about handing over $25million for six months.' The disappearance of major bank ATMs saw the appearance of third-party ATMs that charge $3 fees for use. 'There's less bank-owned ATMs and there's more third-party ATMs that charge $3 or so,' Mr Bryce said. The Council of Financial Regulators - which includes the RBA - and the Australian Competition and Consumer Commission is proposing a new federal minister in charge of cash distribution who would have oversight over a registered entity that would 'provide critical cash services to a significant part of the market'. 'Despite the rise of digital payments, cash remains vital for many Australians, particularly in regional and remote communities,' it said in a consultation paper. 'Cash supports secure, inclusive, and resilient transactions for those who prefer or rely on it.' The federal government last year announced a cash mandate would be coming into force on January 1, 2026 requiring businesses to offer customers a cash option.
Yahoo
21-07-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
NAB responds to wild conspiracy theory about customer accounts being frozen
Australians have been up in arms about a policy from one of the Big Four banks that doesn't even exist. Multiple posts have appeared on social media claiming NAB customers could be frozen out of their accounts if they made "mean" comments online. The fake claim even alleged that you could have your account closed down in certain circumstances. Aussies were furious and said it was a gross overreach of power. However, a bank spokesperson told Yahoo Finance these incorrect allegations are linked to a policy that was brought in two years ago. RELATED NAB worker saves grandmother from $50K heartbreak after noticing tiny detail Common neighbour problem plaguing Aussie houses Major inflation change following RBA's shock interest rate decision Where did the NAB conspiracy come from? The incorrect claims have been floating around since 2023, but they have recently been doing the rounds again on social media pages like Facebook and Threads. It all started when NAB updated its terms and conditions to protect customers from financial abuse. The new policy would mean you could have your account frozen or closed if you engaged in "unacceptable conduct". When you send money to someone, even if it's just 1 cent, you can include a message in the description or reference section. Perpetrators of financial abuse had been using this to send offensive or harmful messages to certain people and NAB's change was aimed at stamping out this behaviour. 'We're blocking around 15,000 abusive messages each month sent through payment channels and today's move further puts financial abusers on notice that we will do everything we can to protect innocent people,' NAB's head of customer vulnerability, Michael Chambers, said two years ago when the policy update was brought in. Many other banks have similar policies to protect people from financial furious over fake claims While the policy change had good intentions, people misconstrued how it could affect their accounts. Many started posting on social media that you could have your money frozen purely for just saying something nasty anywhere on the internet. "If the NAB are going to scrutinise your social media accounts it means they have too much time on their hands. I would close my account it they did that," wrote one person. "So NAB is now in charge or Facebook ??? If my bank does anything like that I'd just close my account," added another. There was even an article online promoting the conspiracy. While the theory has roots as far back as 2023, people have resurrected it in recent weeks for an unknown reason. These new posts have been liked hundreds of times and shared widely across the internet. What does NAB have to say about the misinformation? When approached by Yahoo Finance, NAB declined to elaborate further about the conspiracy. But it's worth mentioning that the changes made in 2023 only applied to activity on NAB's banking channels like internet banking and the mobile app. NAB doesn't have the power to close your account based on things you might say on the internet. 'Concerns about financial abuse remains one of the top reasons customers get in touch with our customer support team, NAB Assist,' Chambers said two years ago. 'If a NAB account holder is now found to be perpetrating financial abuse, we will be able to suspend or terminate their services. 'We're taking a firm stand against financial abuse, and we aren't resting there. We're working with other banks to help develop a consistent approach across the industry.'Error in retrieving data Sign in to access your portfolio Error in retrieving data
