Banks defer $200bn in loans under coronavirus assistance schemes

More than 100,000 Australians have sought relief on loan repayments in the past week alone.

Australian banks have been called on by the government to assist during the economic slowdown

More than $20bn in loans have been deferred by Australian banks in just the past week under coronavirus assistance schemes, bringing total deferred loans to at least $200bn, according to the Australian Banking Association.

New numbers out on Friday showed loans for 100,000 Australians, including 50,000 home loans, have been deferred in the past week.

Australian banks have now deferred at least 643,000 loans and nearly 392,000 home loans during the COVID-19 pandemic.

ABA chief executive Anna Bligh said the new data showed the extent to which banks were assisting customers in bridging the crisis.

“These new figures, show banks working overtime to ensure assistance is given where needed to customers who are affected by this crisis,” Ms Bligh said.

“The surge in demand for assistance from banks shows that the economic impacts continue to be felt, and by no means is the nation through this crisis,” she said.

The Australian economy has been dealt a body blow by the employment stand-down triggered by the coronavirus pandemic.

ANZ data suggests new job ads have collapsed by almost 53 per cent in one month alone, almost five times the size of the largest previous fall in new job ads during the GFC.

The Reserve Bank of Australia is expecting unemployment to hit 10 per cent, leaving almost one million Australians out of work.

The Australian Bureau of Statistics estimates that around 650,000 to 700,000 Australians lost their jobs in March.

Australian banks have been called on by the government to assist during the economic slowdown by providing short-term financing to bridge the period to the JobKeeper payments and assist those who are unable to pay loans due to the economic crisis.

The federal government estimates that almost 420,000 small and medium businesses have received cash flow assistance through the subsidy.

This reportedly amounted to 6 per cent of all mortgages and 13 per cent of all SME loans.