All articles by Hugh Fasken
Hugh Fasken
ANZ follows the market and cuts banking fees
ANZ has become the last of Australias Big Four banks to rethink its fees structure for retail banking customers, following the lead of National Australia Bank (NAB) which kicked off a trend in August that was quickly followed by Westpac and Commonwealth Bank of Australia (CBA) (see RBI 617) But unlike its three main rivals, ANZs fee amendments will not come into force until 10 December, three months after NABs fee cuts take effect and two months later than Westpac and CBA amend their charging structures. ANZ is also likely to attract flak from local commentators over the nature of its amended fees: while it is to cut its overdraft fee from A$35 ($30) to A$6, the overdraft charge will be charged daily, rather than per event, subject to the daily fee being capped at 10 occurrences in any given month.
Capital One launches SmartCents initiative
Called SmartCents Checking, Capital Ones offering automatically transfers $0.50 from a customers current account to a linked savings account for every debit card purchase or online bill payment, with the bank matching 100 percent of all eligible customer transfers for the first three months, and 5 percent thereafter, subject to a limit on the bonuses of $300 per year.
Cetelem launches credit advice
Cetelem, the consumer finance subsidiary of BNP Paribas (BNPP), has launched a free credit advice service for all French consumers, including non-customers of BNPP, to promote the responsible use of credit and improve financial literacy The service is available by telephone and online, via a dedicated website at www.moncreditresponsable.com and is, says the consumer finance division, a first in the French market. The new offering has been flagged up by a series of press and online advertisements, highlighting the availability of free, impartial advice on consumer credit.
HSBC signals A-P shift with CEO move
In a further indication of the importance of the Asia-Pacific market to HSBC, the group has said its CEO is to be relocated from the UK to Hong Kong In a statement, the group said: Operating from Hong Kong, the hub for HSBCs Asia-Pacific business, Michael Geoghegan will be located in the groups strategically most important region, with a focus on ensuring its growth potential is fully realised. While HSBC reported half-year profit of $5.02 billion, down 50 percent, its Asia-Pacific businesses were by far the groups most significant segment
Fees and the Commission
The European Commission has published a 150-page report on current account fees across 27 countries in Europe Overall, the agency argues that retail banking fees are still too high, too opaque and differ too widely across the European Union though it has stopped short of imposing fee caps Hugh Fasken reports.The European Commissions (EC) latest heavyweight research into retail banking fees across the 27 countries of the European Union the third such document in four years has been published inauspiciously at a time when the global credit crisis shows signs of petering out.
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Ping An gets eWise to OFM
Hugh Fasken reports.In what is seemingly a first in the fast-developing Chinese retail financial services market, insurer Ping An is offering Ping An One, an online account aggregation and financial management tool
Bank of East Asia posts H1 profit rise of 49%
Bank of East Asia, Hong Kongs third-biggest lender by market value, has said first-half profit rose 49 percent Net income in the six months ended 30 June rose to HK$1.17 billion ($151 million) from a restated HK$785 million in the first half of 2008. The BEA Group recorded net interest income of HK$3.23 billion, a decline of 7.2 percent from the same period last year
State Bank of India to roll out 600,000 PoS
State Bank of India (SBI), the countrys largest lender, plans to set up 600,000 points of sale (PoS) terminals as part of its plans to foray into the merchant acquiring business Around 40 percent of the terminals are to be set up in metros and major urban centres, while the rest will be in so called Tier-II and Tier-III centres.
Santander to sponsor Ferrari F1
Going firmly against the trend of major banking groups dropping sponsorships of motor racings Formula 1, Spains Santander has set the sports world alight with news it is switching its multi-million-dollar sponsorship of F1s McLaren Mercedes team to arch-rival Ferrari
Maybank reports 59% drop in pre-tax profit
Malaysias largest banking group, Maybank, saw its profit for the financial year ended 30 June fall by 59 percent to MYR1.67 billion ($472 million). According to the bank, the lower profit was due in part to higher loan loss provisions and impairment charges in relation to investments in Bank Internasional Indonesia and MCB Bank of Pakistan of MYR1.62 billion and MYR353 million respectively.