Australian Banking & Finance articles from February 2006

Australian Banking & Finance archives from February 2006

Melbourne bankers agree--competition tougher as growth slows: top retail bankers Andrew Thorburn of the NAB, Brian Hartzer of ANZ, Tom Gentile of GE Money and Allan Griffiths of AVIVA, combined at the Australian Banking & Finance magazine forum on the Retail Banking Outlook for 2006.
February 15, 2006... BRIAN HARTZER AND ANDREW Thorburn can rest easy, Tom Gentile has no plans to take over their ba[begin strikethrough]nks[end strikethrough] this year. But that's about the only good news on the competition front. The 2006 QAS Retail...

$455,300 a head: Aussies lead the world as managed funds double: Australians have more in managed funds, per person, than any other major country, according to an analysis from AFG Financial Planning published today.(NEWS)
February 15, 2006... AFG Global Funds Management Index shows that on a per capita basis Australians have $45,300 invested in managed funds--99.45 percent more than the figure of $22,740 recorded in 2000. While US investors led the world in 2000, with an average...

Driving enhanced customer loyalty and revenue growth in the retail banking sector: branch transformation is a key enabler for success: the retail banking agenda is clearly focused on revenue growth--developing strategies to increase customer share of wallet, decreasing the bank's reliance on interest based income, and differentiating the customer service experience.(NEWS)
February 15, 2006... Central to this strategy is the need for a transformational approach to bank's existing branch networks. The rationale is that customers are continuing to use branches as their primary banking channel, preferring face-to-face interactions over...

Commonwealth Bank tops worldwide foreign exchange poll.(NEWS)
February 15, 2006... REUTERS RECENTLY ANNOUNCED THAT THE Commonwealth Bank topped its global survey of foreign exchange forecasters. Of the 53 banks that provided their 12-month forecasts for the major currencies in the Reuters' January 2005 survey, the...

Segmenting distribution: manage your resources, not your customers.(NEWS)
February 15, 2006... Mind the gap Banks spotted a long time ago that some customers are worth a lot more than others. Yet despite a lot of time and effort (not to mention money), customer indicators like cross-sell have hardly moved. We believe that banks...

10 steps to reduce the risk of data theft.(SPECIAL FEATURE: SECURITY AND FRAUD PREVENTION)
February 15, 2006... Last year, Australian Banking & Finance introduced its readers to the "Threat of Lifestyle Computing" and the serious risk attached to the growing use of mobile devices such as iPods, USB sticks and Bluetooth enabled mobile phones in the...

Banks are becoming the new borders.(SPECIAL FEATURE: SECURITY AND FRAUD PREVENTION)
February 15, 2006... The growth in cybercrime has been nothing short of frightening with computer literate criminals anywhere in the world cooperating remotely to get consumers' identity and financial details to steal and defraud. Unisys Managing Partner Financial...

Securing national critical infrastructure; government and banks moving to ensure 'trust' online.(SPECIAL FEATURE: SECURITY AND FRAUD PREVENTION)
February 15, 2006... WHILE THE INCIDENCE OF ONLINE FRAUD in Australia is thought to have plateaued for the moment and the Electronic Funds Transfer Code of Practice largely limits the loss any customer might experience to $150, the banks are still footing the bill...

Black market in credit card and other personal data makes protection a priority: amid reports of a growing black market in stolen personal data, personal possession protection company Secure Sentinel has urged Australians to take steps to protect against the loss or theft of personal items that could contribute to identity fraud.(SPECIAL FEATURE: SECURITY AND FRAUD PREVENTION)
February 15, 2006... DENISE BOFILL, GENERAL Manager Secure Sentinel said identify theft was now ubiquitous and had emerged as a key threat to personal security as organised crime groups, such as those reportedly operating through unscrupulous call centres, became...

[Business case for] token authentication in Internet banking.(SPECIAL FEATURE: SECURITY AND FRAUD PREVENTION)
February 15, 2006... THIS WAS TOPICAL IN 2005. 2006 it is mandatory. Tokens for internet banking are not justified by fraud. Tokens are justified by increased transactions. There is no bank without security and trust. Threats to internet banking are...

It pays to be prepared: no business is immune.(SPECIAL FEATURE: SECURITY AND FRAUD PREVENTION)
February 15, 2006... FRAUD IS ON THE RISE AND Australia is not immune. According to PricewaterhouseCoopers' 2005 Global Economic Survey, 63 percent of Australian organisations fell victim to economic crime over the two year survey period, a rise of 16 percentage...

IT security--how to safely survive the IT revolution in banking and finance: legal pressures, not to mention your moral obligation to assist unwitting victims, means that you should never delay when disclosing IT security incidents.(SPECIAL FEATURE: SECURITY AND FRAUD PREVENTION)
February 15, 2006... IN NOVEMBER 2005, A LAPTOP belonging to an employee of the Boeing Corporation was stolen. Among the information on the machine was personal financial data about 161,000 current and former employees of the aerospace giant. None of the...

Move to paperless banking will drive identity authentication strategies.(SPECIAL FEATURE: SECURITY AND FRAUD PREVENTION)
February 15, 2006... Recent research suggests that the ever increasing online threat to people's money will focus the public's attention on security in 2006. Moreover, the potential to lose customers, as well as their money, will focus the banks' attention on the...

Spear phishing--don't think you're immune.(SPECIAL FEATURE: SECURITY AND FRAUD PREVENTION)
February 15, 2006... WHEN INFAMOUS BANK ROBBER Willie Sutton was asked why ho robbed banks he said 'because that's where the money is'. There has been a plethora of press about online banking fraud over the last 18 months, but online theft in other industries...

Customer focus a key issue for banks.(ADAPTIVE & INNOVATIVE BANKS--PICTORIAL)
February 15, 2006... Key financial leaders gave their views on the financial services industry at the recent Adaptive & Innovative Banks Conference held by Australian Banking & Finance. Speakers included Rob Hunt of Bendigo Bank, Tom Gentile from GE Money, Rohan...

Edgar leads ANZ Asia as Kupper goes gambling: ANZ senior managing director Dr Bob Edgar has added the banks Asian business to his portfolio following Elmer Funke Kuppers move to gaming company Tabcorp.(NEWS)
February 15, 2006... Kupper, who was seen by many as a potential successor to ANZ chief executive John McFarlane, has taken up the newly created position of head of Tabcorps Wagering, Gaming and Media divisions. Edgar is no stranger to the Asian markets, having...