Powered by MOMENTUM MEDIA
Powered by momentum media
Powered by momentum media
nestegg logo

Borrow

Another major bank flags remediation-related profit hit

  • October 24 2019
  • Share

Borrow

Another major bank flags remediation-related profit hit

By Grace Ormsby
October 24 2019

Westpac has announced that its cash earnings for the second half of 2019 will take a $341 million hit, thanks to customer remediation programs.

Another major bank flags remediation-related profit hit

author image
  • October 24 2019
  • Share

Westpac has announced that its cash earnings for the second half of 2019 will take a $341 million hit, thanks to customer remediation programs.

Profit hit

The big four bank said approximately 72 per cent of the impact relates directly to customer payments that are inclusive of interest, while the remaining 28 per cent relates to the costs associated with running remediation programs.

Of the total impact on cash earnings, $168 million will be designations associated with financial advice, while $109 million will be allocated to provisions associated with interest-only loans that did not automatically switch over to principal and interest loans when they were required to.

For Westpac CEO Brian Hartzer, “a key priority in 2019 has been to deal with outstanding remediation issues and refund customers as quickly as possible”.

Advertisement
Advertisement

“The additional provisions announced today are part of that commitment.”

Profit hit

Forming part of Westpac’s “get it right, put it right” initiative, the CEO said: “We are determined to fix these issues and stop these errors occurring.”

“We will continue to review our products and services to ensure they deliver the right outcomes for customers, and if necessary, make further provisions,” he continued.

It brings Westpac’s customer remediation bill to $958 million in 2019 alone.

The news comes after NAB indicated it would be setting aside an additional $832 million for remediation-related expenses in the second half of 2019 at the beginning of October. 

Since then, ANZ also announced its 2019 second-half cash profit would be impacted by an additional $559 million for customer-related remediation.

Forward this article to a friend. Follow us on Linkedin. Join us on Facebook. Find us on X for the latest updates
Rate the article

About the author

author image

Grace is a journalist on Momentum Media's nestegg. She enjoys being able to provide easy to digest information and practical tips for Australians with regard to their wealth, as well as having a platform on which to engage leading experts and commentators and leverage their insight.

About the author

author image
Grace Ormsby

Grace is a journalist on Momentum Media's nestegg. She enjoys being able to provide easy to digest information and practical tips for Australians with regard to their wealth, as well as having a platform on which to engage leading experts and commentators and leverage their insight.

more on this topic

more on this topic

More articles