NewsBite

Responsible lending

Yesterday

Non-bank lenders like Fair Go Finance have been stepping up as banks exit the near-prime consumer lending sector.

Non-bank lender Fair Go Finance secures $125m warehouse

Perth-based consumer non-bank lender Fair Go Finance has almost doubled its existing loan origination capacity.

Mario Rehayem is the chief executive of Pepper Money.

Pepper warns of private credit collateral damage to non-bank lenders

The KKR-backed mortgage and business financier said it put its own loan book under considerable scrutiny, and the sector was being tainted by bad operators.

This Month

APRA has warned of a pick-up in higher risk lending, particularly high debt-to-income borrowing by investors.

APRA warns banks of looming lending curbs to reduce housing debt risks

The prudential regulator said it had found “signs of a pick-up in higher risk lending” and is engaging with the big banks on new rules to slow it down.

Humm independent director Andrew Darbyshire didn’t ratify accounts

The refusal suggests deep board division and delayed the release of the company’s results, as it also fielded a $286 million bid by chairman Andrew Abercrombie.

October

ASIC research found 47 per cent of Australians with loans struggled to make a repayment in the last year.

ASIC halts private credit scheme over disclosure concerns

The corporate regulator has issued interim stop orders to prevent any retail investors from pouring money into products promoted by non-bank lender TruePillars.

Advertisement

September

Joe Longo=, the chairman of the Australian Securities and Investments Commission.

Non-banks under ASIC scrutiny for treatment of vulnerable borrowers

A new industry code of conduct will take effect this week, following ASIC’s legal action against a lender over its treatment of vulnerable customers.

ASIC chairman Joe Longo.

Longo says La Trobe should have seen stop orders coming

The ASIC chair also said the corporate regulator was worried about the private credit sector’s over-exposure to real estate.

Metrics co-founder Andrew Lockhart.

Ratings agency Lonsec downgrades Metrics funds on governance concerns

The firm is the country’s ninth-largest business lender, and the changes have implications for financial advisors recommending key credit funds to investors.

July

Bitcoin has breached $US120,000 ($182,918) for the first time, with investor optimism increasing almost daily.

Beware the coming crypto crisis

Bitcoin, one of the digital assets banks may lend against, has been nearly four times as volatile as major indices since 2020.

June

Helia chief executive Pauline Blight-Johnston is departing the lenders mortgage insurance company.

Helia reviewed ‘circumstances’ of CEO’s share sale before departure

Helia, formerly known as Genworth, quietly investigated its CEO Pauline Blight-Johnston over the sale of shares before the loss of a major contract and her resignation.

Nick Molnar, co-founder of Afterpay, says regulation will legitimise BNPL allowing it to compete with everyday spending using credit cards.

Why Afterpay could be coming to a supermarket checkout near you

Eight years after the first calls to bring BNPL under credit laws, Nick Molnar says the new regime will help it compete more aggressively with credit cards.

April

Brookfield’s Stewart Upson.

Brookfield lifts the lid on $3b La Trobe’s riches; roadshow commences

The business has been pitched as “highly profitable” with EBITDA margins of 71 per cent and a return-on-equity of greater than 70 per cent.

March

Peter McMullin chairs Good Return and is an investor.

Impact investor Good Return, backed by Spotless scion, preps new fund

The new fund’s minimum investment size is $20,000 and proceeds would be used to guarantee and de-risk loans from lenders to female-led businesses.

Chris Andrews, CEO, La Trobe Financial

Brookfield-backed La Trobe selects advisers for strategic review

Morgan Stanley and UBS were appointed in recent days to canvass options for the firm, which has $20 billion in assets under management.

Cosima Marriner, Editor, The Australian Financial Review, Richard Harris, Partner, Gilbert + Tobin ,Luci Ellis, Chief Economist, Westpac Banking Group Anna Bligh, CEO, Australian Banking Association and Jonathan Mott, Partner & Head of Banks Research, Barrenjoey.

Australia must heed turning tide of banking regulations abroad

APRA’s regulatory mission creep is unlikely to help banks and insurers compete more effectively against nimble start-ups and tech giants expanding into financial services.

Advertisement

CBA says responsible lending rules shield it from rampant liar loans

The bank’s retail boss, Angus Sullivan, says there are, however, “a few areas” where a banker could coax someone through an application, so it needs to remain alert.

October 2024

Dan Gallen is the chief investment officer of Pallas Capital.

Goldman Sachs refinances Pallas Capital’s $500m facility

It comes after Pallas in July lured Westpac NZ to refinance a $NZ400 million facility focused on Kiwi small-to-medium enterprise borrowers.

Major banks have split on prudential policy settings.

Banking regulator rejects calls to cut home loan interest rate buffer

APRA chairman John Lonsdale has hit back at the Australian Banking Association at a parliamentary hearing on Friday.

The lobby group for the banks says a lower serviceability buffer will allow first-time buyers to borrow more.

Calls to reduce 3pc home loan bank buffer test

The Australian Banking Association says more people will be able to access the property market if the prudential regulator is more flexible.

The private credit sector needs more scrutiny, given the information gaps facing regultors.

Revealed: How much Australia’s private credit sector is really worth

The industry’s risks to Australian financial stability are low, the RBA says. But plenty of information gaps remain, and regulators are playing catch up.

Original URL: https://www.afr.com/topic/responsible-lending-1mqx