An important discussion about the future of cash across Australia with Robbie Barwick from The Australian Citizens Party.
The CEO of CBA Matt Comyn floated the idea of limiting cash transactions to $500, so we pull this apart in the context of the Use Cash campaign which ran successfully on the 2nd April.
See my earlier show for detail of that campaign, and the Senate interrogation of the RBA which we also discuss. The Fight For Cash Just Got Terminally Serious! https://youtu.be/LiNSH7I_8xs
Despite cash being legal tender in Australia, surprisingly it is legal for businesses to refuse to accept it provided that they inform consumers of their stance before any “contract” for the supply of goods or services is entered into.
The war on cash has taken an interesting turn, with the RBA being questioned by the Senate Inquiry into Regional Bank Branch closures, and claiming the use of cash had fallen, but frankly on thin and filtered evidence; while Armaguard, Australia’s only cash-in-transit business is facing the prospect of collapsing due to the claimed declining use of cash. The RBA, which regulates the payments industry and is responsible for printing money is also involved in the crisis talks.
And a social media campaign, led by the Cash is King Facebook group is calling on Aussies to withdraw and use cash next Tuesday, April 2, in protest against the shift to digital payments. The protest is aimed at showing Australia’s banks and retailers that there is still a demand for the use of cash in society. That is, if you can still find an ATM.
So, action on Tuesday to grab some cash could be an important step on the road to saving cash for All Australians who want to use it, despite pressure from the Government who is responding to huge pressure from the commercial banks. This in turn puts massive pressure on the current Senate review, who is scheduled to hold one more community hearing on Bribie Island on the 16th April. Will the committee who has laid bare the issues of branch closures and removal of cash come good or hook their final report like the earlier Royal Commission Inquiry into Financial Services, which exposed major issues through their hearings, only to turn to water in their final report and recommendations, which allowed the banks to behave business as usual. This time all eyes will be on the Senate.
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The Commonwealth Bank subsidiary Bankwest, the 130-year-old former Bank of Western Australia bank announced last Wednesday that it was moving to become a digital-only bank and would close 45 locations in the state. The 45 Bankwest branches that have been earmarked for closure will close their doors by October this year. There are 28 locations in Perth and 17 in regional WA. A further 15 branches will be rebranded under the Commonwealth Bank banner and are expected to finish their transformation by the end of the year.
Yes, this is the same CBA whose CEO Mat Comyn on 20th September 2023 in a statement to the Senate Inquiry into regional branch closures promised not to close more branches until at least 2026, even though they specifically excluded Bankwest from their statement, while saying “we recognise the unique and important contribution that regional Australia makes to our country”. “Our decision to pause regional branch closures is also predicated on customers and communities valuing our decision to stay”.
Committee member Senator Richard Colbeck said the Senate committee has been hearing plenty of people raising concerns about the vital banking services being lost.
“Every week in our hearings we hear from local communities how important these essential services are and how their communities are affected, yet those who are given a license to provide those services, the so-called service sector, continuously ignore those pleas and withdraw services – it is as though their ears were painted on,” he said.
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In evidence given in Parliament this week we had confirmation that at least NAB, one of Australia’s big four banks, is using partial interaction statistics to falsely justify their programme of Regional Branch closures. This is the data which is parroted by the Banking Association spokesperson to justify the unjustifiable.
In the light of this, Dale Webster, The Regional Journalist, and I (remember we got the Inquiry up in the first place!) have written to the Senate Inquiry on closures today asking for an audit of all statistics being used by the banks to justify their closure plans.
Worth also reflecting on CBA’s conditional 3 year freeze on closures, and Westpac’s pull back.
Once again, we shine a spotlight on disgraceful behaviour as banks continue to suck the life blood from so many regional towns in the interests of shareholder returns. This must change!
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We look at the latest Senate hearings on Regional Branch closures, and discuss the continued misdirection coming from the cost-cutting banks – justified – so called – by the migration to digital banking.
But as discussed during the hearings, the banks do not want to talk about what they are doing, and a peoples bank is required to offer a real alternative.
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Dale Webster at The Regional has caught CBA out, as despite their promise not to close regional branches while the Senate Inequity is running, they are, by carefully defining down “Regional” to a very narrow definition, conveniently leveraging the ABS definitions, despite elsewhere calling these same regions Regional.
The Senate needs to hold CBA to account here. Write to your Senator, and also CBA management. This is plainly not acceptable nor within the spirit of their earlier statement! Well done Dale!
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More from Dale Webster of The Regional on the important issue of bank branch closures. She calls out the political inaction so far, including from our Treasurer and Finance Minister, who wins “porky of the year!”
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How is it that commercial interests can gain control of an important Government inquiry? This is the excellent question posed by Dale Webster at The Regional. The Regional Banking Taskforce was, she says, stacked by bankers, and its outcomes were pretty much biased from day one.
The current Government are also culpable.
We need a proper inquiry in Regional Banking services, as Dale and I highlighted in our recent joint letter to the Senate. Please get behind it!
Our submission is available to view here and download : https://digitalfinanceanalytics.com/blog/loss-of-in-person-banking-letter-to-rarat-committee/
And a list of Senators by state is available here: https://citizensparty.org.au/aus-senate
If you care about the economic future of our regional towns and suburbs, then please contact your local Senators and tell them that they should support the initiative, ideally over the next few days, so as to create maximum impact in the final sitting week of the year.
The Regional: https://www.theregional.com.au/
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Westpac is planning to remove the final branch from Opal Regional Centre Coober Pedy. The next branch is 440 kms away.
Senator Rennick made a statement on this in the Senate yesterday. And after a town meeting on Monday, it was clear this decision would adversely hit the town commercially, socially and from a mental health perspective.
The Advertiser ran an article on the closure, which may not yet be a done deal.
So, if you care about this issue, I suggest contacting the SA Premier Peter Malinauskas premier@sa.gov.au https://www.dpc.sa.gov.au/the-premier and Westpac CEO Peter King https://www.westpac.com.au/about-westpac/westpac-group/executive-team/ and John McFarlane Chairman and Independent Non-executive Director https://www.westpac.com.au/about-westpac/westpac-group/board-of-directors/ https://banking.westpac.com.au/olfmu/eforms/ConsumerFeedback/#/welcome
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We (Dale Webster and I) have written to the Senate Standing Committee on Regional and Rural Affairs and Transport about the economic fallout from the removal of in person banking services across Australia. Today I discuss this with Robbie Barwick from The Australian Citizens Party and the need to lobby Senate members on this important issue.
If you care about the economic future of our regional towns and suburbs, then please contact your local Senators and tell them that they should support the initiative, ideally over the next few days, so as to create maximum impact in the final sitting weeks of the year.
Go to the Walk The World Universe at https://walktheworld.com.au/
