House Economics to grill ANZ and CBA

As the country faces the ongoing economic impact of lockdowns, banks continue to play important roles in aiding Australia’s economic recovery by supporting their customers in financial distress.

Following on from its September 9 hearing, the House Economics Committee will this time hear from representatives of CBA and ANZ at a public hearing on Thursday September 23. Again, a central focus of the hearing will be how the lockdowns have impacted home and business loan customers and how the banks are helping these customers pull through this difficult time.

The committee will also grill the banks on their progress in implementing the recommendations of the Hayne Royal Commission.

Mr Wilson said, "While there is light at the end of tunnel with the vaccine rollout, the ongoing lockdowns continue to negatively impact Australia’s economy and put significant pressures on some home and business loan customers.

"It’s vital that banks implement reasonable measures to relieve customers doing it tough as a direct result of the lockdowns, such as by offering loan deferrals, fee waivers and other support packages," Mr Wilson said.

As with the September 9 hearing, this hearing will also cover the implications of common ownership and capital concentration on Australia’s economy.

"The concentration of capital places inordinate power in the hands of a few large institutional investors that can wield their financial power to the detriment of smaller investors, customers and the wider national interest. The committee seeks to understand the extent of this problem and how the legal and regulatory framework should be changed to better manage the negative impacts of this," Mr Wilson said.

For more information about the hearings, or to read transcripts from previous hearings, visit the committee’s website.

Public hearing details

Date: Thursday, 23 September 2021
Time: 9.15am to 4.15pm
Witnesses: CBA and ANZ

Due to health and safety concerns relating to the COVID-19 pandemic, this hearing is not currently scheduled to be open for public attendance. Interested members of the public will be able to view proceedings via the live webcast at aph.gov.au/live.