Australian Banking & Finance articles from December 2008

Australian Banking & Finance archives from December 2008

Negotiating a changed landscape: while it is agreed that recent federal government intervention into the financial market was needed to stop the "panic", one issue has undeniably emerged--market power of the banks has increased at the expense of other players in the market.(NEWS)
December 1, 2008... An unmitigated nightmare. That was how one senior portfolio manager described the effect of the federal government's guarantee on deposits and wholesale funding on instruments outside of the guarantee. "Firstly, it wasn't needed," the...

Banks show their true grit and determination.(NEWS)(Statistical data)
December 1, 2008... [ILLUSTRATION OMITTED] Despite declining profits Australian banks have shown their resilience during tough and volatile economic times, according to PricewaterhouseCoopers and KPMG. The annual Major Banks Perspective, recently released...

ASIC moves to thaw funds.(NEWS)(Australia. Securities and Investments Commission)
December 1, 2008... New regulatory measures are being implemented in an attempt to unfreeze mortgage funds, which have deferred redemptions as a result of the federal government's guarantee on bank deposits. The Australian Securities and Investments Commission...

Super takes a beating.(NEWS)(superannuation funds)(Statistical data)
December 1, 2008... While industry-wide losses look the norm for 2008, superannuation funds continue to take a beating from listed equity markets around the world. For the month of September alone, super funds' balanced investment options experienced negative...

IAG appoints new chief of Direct Insurance.(NEWS)
December 1, 2008... Insurance Australia Group has appointed Andy Cornish as chief executive of its Australian Direct Insurance division. Cornish, who will commence the role in January next year, will be responsible for the IAG division which provides personal...

ANZ refreshes board.(NEWS)
December 1, 2008... Sir Rod Eddington will take over as chairman of ANZ in the second half of 2009 from current chairman, Charles Goode. Sir Rod is currently a director of Rio Tinto, News Corporation, China Light & Power Holdings, Allco Finance Group and John...

China growth proving irresistible for financial services: amid the doom and gloom of global financial markets those with enough hope and foresight are seeing red of a different kind--the potential beacon of opportunity for financial services in China.(NEWS)
December 1, 2008... The Financial Services Institute of Australasia (Finsia) gathering for the Australia--China Financial Services Summit last month provided insight into the opportunities and challenges for Australian firms looking to enter the behemoth Chinese...

Shining the light on the insurance industry: profitability and the underwriting and pricing strategies of Australian insurers are under close examination due to severe weather events and unstable investment markets. Australian Banking & Finance Magazine spoke to three industry experts to gauge their thoughts on some of the most critical issues facing the sector today.(NEWS)
December 1, 2008... Moody's Investors Service senior analyst, Wing Chew, who has been involved in the insurance and risk management industry for more than 25 years, says the ability of the insurance sector to sell itself and its products to policy holders and the...

Kelly delivers gloomy outlook.(NEWS)(profits of Westpac Banking Corp.)(Financial report)
December 1, 2008... Westpac chief executive Gail Kelly has delivered a pessimistic outlook for the global economy, saying recent government action around the world would not prevent a "severe and prolonged" slowdown in global growth. Kelly made the comments...

2009 current events schedule.(NEWS)(Calendar)
December 1, 2008... 2009 CURRENT EVENTS SCHEDULE Australian Financial Publications, publisher of Australian Banking & Finance Magazine, has some exciting industry events planned for 2009. Covering retail banking and finance, wholesale financial markets,...

Bank account switching made easier.(NEWS)
December 1, 2008... Authorised deposit-taking institutions (ADIs) have commenced providing account switching services to their customers. Under the account switching package, a customer's existing ADI will provide the customer with a list of their direct...

St.George delivers a 'strong' result.(NEWS)
December 1, 2008... St.George Bank has reported a full year cash profit of $1.32 billion, up 13.9 per cent from the previous year. Revenue from ordinary activities grew 9.7 per cent to $3.6 billion. It reported a net profit of $1.2 billion, up 0.9 per cent....

FirstMac, Members Equity win round one.(NEWS)
December 1, 2008... The federal government will inject $1 billion into FirstMac and Members Equity Bank as part of its initiative to support competition in mortgage markets. The Australian Office of Financial Management (AOFM) announced its intention to be a...

Screens bids a hearty farewell to UBS analyst Ralph Butterworth who is leaving the bank.(BEHIND THE SCREENS)
December 1, 2008... Screens bids a hearty farewell to UBS analyst Ralph Butterworth who is leaving the bank. Ralph joined UBS in November 2004 as an analyst, and heads the Australian insurance sector research team. Before joining UBS, Ralph spent eight years in...

Index fund manager, Vanguard Investments Australia's five year experience in China with no revenue to date might have some in a flap.(BEHIND THE SCREENS)
December 1, 2008... Index fund manager, Vanguard Investments Australia's five year experience in China with no revenue to date might have some in a flap. But principal and head of Asia and Japan, Trevor Chudleigh remained philosophical, quoting a colleague at...

Now here's an example of taking a proactive approach to a current issue.(BEHIND THE SCREENS)(Brief article)
December 1, 2008... Now here's an example of taking a proactive approach to a current issue. A new financial literacy program will be introduced in secondary schools to help students make decisions about insurance and superannuation. "We believe financially...

"Quote unquote".(BEHIND THE SCREENS)(Quotation)
December 1, 2008... What's been said over the past fortnight? Here's a selection: "To be able to report a record profit and sound credit quality as at September 2008; the completion of a large percentage of our 2009 year term funding; a sub 40 per cent...

Climate change: financial services in the danger zone.
December 1, 2008... Climate change has risen rapidly up the corporate agenda in recent years. However awareness and preparedness vary markedly between industry sectors. A recent KPMG International review reveals that the financial services sector is among the...

Banks pledge to play fair: in a time of reduced competition across the banking sector, those who have emerged from the consolidation activity argue that the onus is on banks to behave in the appropriate manner and not to abuse their market power.
December 15, 2008... "We're going through a period where I think it is incumbent on the banks to behave responsibly," Peter Hanlon, Westpac group executive, retail and business banking, says. "I think what you are going to get from government and regulators is...

Securing the way forward: issuers, investors and other market participants came together at the Australian Securitisation Conference last month to discuss the challenge of reviving the mortgage backed securities market.(NEWS)(Conference news)
December 15, 2008... Australian Securitisation Forum (ASF) chief executive Greg Medcraft said the organisation had been working on a number of initiatives around three key areas--liquidity, long-term investor base, and transparency--to help reinvigorate the...

Eddie sets off on the long-term journey: after his first 100 days since being appointed as head of MasterCard Worldwide's Australasia operations, Eddie Grobler outlined to Australian Banking & Finance Magazine his plans for the next 1000 days.(NEWS)
December 15, 2008... Eddie Grobler likes to work in days. And the first 100 days of Grobler's appointment as executive vice president, Australasia, for MasterCard Worldwide, has been full of activity. "The first 100 days for me was obviously to understand my...

Riding the financial services rollercoaster: the year 2008 has seen both a drop off and pick up in demand for a range of banking and financial legal services, according to Blake Dawson.(NEWS)
December 15, 2008... No one has been immune from recent global economic and financial market conditions newly appointed managing partner at Blake Dawson, John Carrington, notes softening in areas such as institutional property and in some financial services areas...

Retail banks ready to serve and protect: their customers and reputations respectively, that is. Responsibility was a key theme at the recent Australian Banking & Finance Magazine Retail Financial Services Panel Discussion.(NEWS)
December 15, 2008... Banking executives, as part of the Retail Financial Services Panel Discussion hosted by Australian Banking & Finance Magazine, noted that in the current landscape it is now a critical time for banks to serve their customers responsibly. ...

Retail banking panel.(PICTORIAL)
December 15, 2008... [ILLUSTRATIONS OMITTED] At a time when the Australian banking sector is being recognised for its resilience in the global credit crisis the role of retail banking and retail deposits has become more important than ever. Leaders and senior...

Caught in the storm--financial services IT to undergo transformation.(GARTNER SYMPOSIUM)
December 15, 2008... David Furlonger leads Gartner's worldwide research agenda for the banking and investment services industry. At the Gartner Symposium in Sydney last month he offered his view of the key drivers impacting on the financial services...

Gartner advises Asia Pacific CIOs to plan for growth.(GARTNER SYMPOSIUM)
December 15, 2008... Don't wait for signs of a return to growth to begin planning for business growth. That's the message Gartner analysts delivered to financial services and business CIOs at this year's Gartner Symposium. Speaking at the Symposium,...

Delegates told to drive innovation with open source.(GARTNER SYMPOSIUM)
December 15, 2008... [ILLUSTRATION OMITTED] The current economic downturn poses plenty of challenges and provides many opportunities for Australia's financial services sector, chief executive of open source database management software and support services...

Looking at new ways of delivering quality customer service: the focus of bank executives has shifted from 'running the bank' to 'changing the bank', according to Tata Consultancy Services.(NEWS)
December 15, 2008... Today's volatile environment surrounding the global banking system is providing the opportunity for bank executives to look at their strategic plans, according to Girija Pande, executive vice president and head of Tata Consultancy Services,...

Upgrade for TOWER's Accelerate: TOWER Australia has recently expanded the product line of its electronic underwriting process Accelerate while topping forecasts with its annual profit.(NEWS)
December 15, 2008... TOWER Australia's recent revamp of its Accelerate and TOWER Protection Product (TPP) range has already garnered positive feedback in the competitive life insurance sector. Launched last month, the biggest changes to the TOWER range include...

2009 current events schedule.(NEWS)(Calendar)
December 15, 2008... 2009 CURRENT EVENTS SCHEDULE Australian Financial Publications, publisher of Australian Banking & Finance Magazine, has some exciting industry events planned for 2009. Covering retail banking and finance, wholesale financial markets,...

LIXI sets focus for 2009.(NEWS)(Lending Industry XML Initiative)
December 15, 2008... [ILLUSTRATION OMITTED] Help from LIXI with the implementation of standards across the lending industry will be a key focus for 2009, according to LIXI chief executive Erik Fenna. Fenna made the comments following the group's annual...

Enterprise risk management--a job to be done.(BRIAN GREIG)
December 15, 2008... All business depends on the effective management of risk and uncertainty. In essence, the return on investment is the price achieved for bearing risk in the pursuit of profit. And the two concepts of risk and reward are directly linked:...

Well it's the end of another year.(BEHIND THE SCREENS)
December 15, 2008... Well it's the end of another year. And what a year it has been. No doubt many in the banking and finance community will use the upcoming festive holidays for a well-deserved break. Australian Banking & Finance Magazine would like to wish all...

Speaking of the festive season, some interesting trends came out of a MasterCard Worldwide Australian Christmas Spending Survey recently.(BEHIND THE SCREENS)
December 15, 2008... Speaking of the festive season, some interesting trends came out of a MasterCard Worldwide Australian Christmas Spending Survey recently. The nationwide online survey indicated that women intend to spend more than men on Christmas ($1093 to...

While the global credit crisis and slowdown in economies across the world cause some to complain about the size of their wallets, delegates at last month's Australian Securitisation Conference were given a bit of perspective on the important things in life after listening to an inspirational speech by Peter Baines during the conference's opening night gala dinner.(BEHIND THE SCREENS)(Conference notes)
December 15, 2008... While the global credit crisis and slowdown in economies across the world cause some to complain about the size of their wallets, delegates at last month's Australian Securitisation Conference were given a bit of perspective on the important...

A number of speakers at the Australian securitisation conference travelled from all corners of the globe to attend the event, including Tom Deutsch, deputy executive director of the American Securitization Conference.(BEHIND THE SCREENS)(Brief article)(Conference notes)
December 15, 2008... A number of speakers at the Australian securitisation conference travelled from all corners of the globe to attend the event, including Tom Deutsch, deputy executive director of the American Securitization Conference. When he was thanked for...

We can't go past two comments made at the Australian Securitisation Conference.(BEHIND THE SCREENS)
December 15, 2008... We can't go past two comments made at the Australian Securitisation Conference. When asked about the noticeable level of optimism of investors and participants within the securitisation sector this year following the upheaval they experienced...

Australia's pillars remain upright amidst storm.(impact of financial crises on banks)
December 15, 2008... Few if anyone could have foreseen the unprecedented and tumultuous events that have recently reshaped the global financial services landscape. In the past few months, an economic domino effect has cascaded across the US, UK, continental...