Weekly Update: 03 November

“Our Government understands cost-of-living is the number one pressure on Australian families, which is why help with cost-of-living is our number one priority.” 

– Prime Minister Anthony Albanese speaking at the Australian-Melbourne Institute Economic and Social Outlook conference

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Feature:

ABA launches financial hardship campaign 

This week the ABA launched a campaign encouraging Australians struggling with loan repayments to contact their bank. Titled ‘Don’t tough it out on your own,’ the campaign will run across radio, digital news and social media for four weeks.   

“Banks know many of their customers are making difficult financial decisions right now as the country navigates challenging economic conditions,” said ABA CEO Anna Bligh at the launch of the campaign. “Banks stood by their customers during the COVID-19 pandemic deferring payments for people who for the first time in their lives found themselves unable to pay. Banks stand ready to help people again now.”   

The campaign emphasises that the earlier people reach out; the faster banks can help. 

Listen to the two radio ads here & here

Read more about the campaign here.  

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Parliamentary Update:

• Prime Minister Anthony Albanese delivered a speech to the Australian-Melbourne Institute Economic and Social Outlook conference saying that Australia cannot isolate itself from global challenges. The PM labelled cost-of-living as his top priority while emphasising the importance of reducing inflation through targeted relief. 
• Prime Minister Anthony Albanese authored an op-ed on global conflict, cyber security, and critical minerals following his visit to Washington D.C.  
• Treasurer Jim Chalmers delivered a key speech and released a consultation paper on the Federal Government’s Sustainable Finance Strategy. The consultation paper can be found on the Treasury website and submissions will close 1 December. 
• Assistant Treasurer Stephen Jones announced that thousands of investment scam and phishing websites have been removed since July 2023, following a blitz by ASIC’s new website takedown service provider. 
• Opposition Leader Peter Dutton indicated that the Coalition may support a temporary cut to the fuel excise as Australian motorists face high prices. 
• Parliament returns next week with the Senate returning on the 13th of November. View the draft weekly program

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Policy Update:

The ABA: 

• appeared at the Legal and Constitutional Legislation Committee inquiry into the Identity Verification Services Bill. ABA’s Chief of Policy Chris Taylor spoke at the inquiry: “The ABA strongly supports Government initiatives to provide a secure basis for use of the Facial Verification Service and National Driver Licence Facial Recognition Solution. Importantly for the banking industry, the Bill provides a secure way for banks to check the identity of those opening and using accounts against passport and drivers licence. Australians will be safer with the passage of this Bill. 
• launched its Future of Banking webinar series this week with a session focused on the impact of technological change on banking and bank customers. The inaugural session turned the spotlight onto the rapid advance in quantum computing capability and the challenge to cybersecurity. ABA Associate Member EY’s Asia-Pacific Quantum Technology Leader Alexey Bocharnikov was guest speaker.   
• attended the Financial Rights Legal Centre Rights Centre to listen in to your financial counsellors taking calls on the National Debt Helpline. The session provided us insights into the types of issues Australians are facing, as well as the vital role financial counsellors play in assisting those who face financial difficulty. 

• attended the Climate Risk Panel at APRA’s Banking Industry Day on 31 October. ABA was represented by Head of Economic Policy, Emma Penzo. The panellists comprised Executive Director APRA Sean Carmody, Head of Resources, Energy and Infrastructure at ANZ, Paul Richards and Partner EY, Emma Herd. The panel discussed the evolving nature of climate risk management in banking and the role of regulators such as APRA.  

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Regulatory Update:

• ASIC’s new website takedown capability knocks out over 2,500 investment scam and phishing websites. Read more here  
• ASIC releases second publication on insights from the reportable situations regime. Read more here 
• APRA applies additional $20m capital requirement to RAC Insurance. Read more here 

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Economic Update:

• Retail trade figures showed a 0.9 per cent growth in the value of retail sales between August and September 2023 and a 2.0% growth between September 2022 and September 2023.  

• Household deposits are continuing to increase and are now sitting at $1.42 trillion, a growth of $11b in additional savings held by Australian households between August and September 2023. 

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Upcoming Submissions:

Published submissions

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Selected Media:

• SMH – Borrowers warned to prepare for Melbourne Cup rate rise 
• Mortgage Business – Australian Banking Association launches new campaign  
• AFR – RBA: Economists call at least one rate rise, push back first rate cut date 

Weekly Update