First things first, the Commonwealth Bank is certainly big enough to look after itself, but the ‘…Australians will rightly be furious…’ comments from Federal Treasurer Wayne Swan last week were perhaps a touch unwarranted.
A ten basis point increase in CBA’s variable mortgage rate to 5.74 per cent prompted the Treasurers outburst, …
Shrinking banking competition was high on the agenda for Australia’s media last week with the Australian Competition & Consumer Commission (ACCC) driving the argument.
However, despite the large acquisitions by the majors in recent times, are some smaller lenders actually trying hard enough?
Take the example of the …
The Reserve Bank of Australia’s (RBA) decision to hold official interest rates at 3 per cent this week should prompt more borrowers to fix their lending obligations, both business and personal.
Borrowers though should not be trying to pick the exact bottom of the interest rate cycle, and …
Westpac could see its new ‘we’re a bank you can bank’ on branding strategy come back to bite it as the group champions itself as the boring yet safe man of Australian banking.
Consumers are generally fickle, which creates risk for a bank hanging its medium term success …
The Federal Government is ignoring the first home buyer debt burden bubble it is creating, as it concentrates on boosting employment in the housing sector.
Highlighting the problem is the largely overlooked fact average first home loan values ballooned 24 per cent, or $56,000 to $286,000, in the …
Females are more likely to get a raw deal on interest rates when it comes to taking out a mortgage, yet they appear smarter when choosing the repayment structure.
Males with 36.5 per cent have a much higher ability to qualify for the interest rate reduced professional package …


