Trending Financial News 26 August

MyState expands out of heartland

MyState is now selling more loans and financial products outside of Tasmania than within its home state.

MyState now offers a full online banking service.

“Our digital platform is a key driver of organic customer growth outside of our traditional heartland areas,” said MyState CEO Melos Sulicich,

“Our online customer numbers have doubled in the last 12 months.”

Loans in NSW, Victoria and Queensland now make up 55 per cent of the MyState loan book, with 42 per cent coming from Tasmania.

MyState reported lending growth of close to $500 million (up 10.7 per cent) in 2018/2019.

Savers like MyState

Tasmanian based lender MyState is attracting new customers through its digital banking channels. MyState now offers a full online banking service.

MyState CEO Melos Sulicich said MyState’s new online accounts have successfully targeted “aspirational customers” for deposits. Deposits were up 12 per cent to $3.7 billion at MyState in 2018/19.

Retail deposits represent almost 69 per cent of the bank’s funding. MyState’s eSaver account pays a higher rate of interest to higher balances with eh highest rates available for balances over $500,000.

Fast & Easy People’s Choice named Personal Lender 2019

People’s Choice Credit Union has been named Personal Lender of the Year by Money Magazine for the second year in a row.

“People’s Choice last year launched its Fast & Easy lending strategy,” said CEO Steve Laidlaw.

“We wanted to find better ways to provide great rates, outstanding service and choices.

People’s Choice Fast & Easy Loans recognises good credit histories, requires less paperwork has fast approvals.

NAB faces court over loan ‘introducers’

National Australia Bank faces court action and a possible fine of more than $500 million over a $24 billion loan “introducer” program that is still active, until October, in NAB.

The corporate watchdog, the Australian Securities and Investments Commission, says that between September 2013 and July 2016, NAB took 297 loan applications worth $24 billion from 25 unlicensed ‘introducers.’ The introducers received up to 0.6 per cent of the loan amount in commission.

Cash ban linked to negative interest rates

The Morrison government’s proposed ban on business cash transactions over $10,000 has generated a scare campaign on social media. Critics claim the government is planning to ban cash before moving to introduce negative interest rates.

The scare campaign has been fuelled recently by a recent article published by the International Monetary Fund explaining that few nations now are in a position to cut interest rates to counter a recession because rates are already approaching zero.

“In a cashless world, there would be no lower bound on interest rates,” say the IMF researchers.

“A central bank could reduce the policy rate from, say, 2 percent to minus 4 percent.

“Without cash, depositors would have to pay the negative interest rate to keep their money with the bank, making consumption and investment more attractive.”

Falling prices catch out buyer

Falling property prices have caught out a house buyer in Sydney who has now been ordered to pay $600,000 to the vendor after failing to go through with the contract of sale.

The buyer paid a five per cent deposit ($141,500) and signed a contract to buy a property in South Turramurra, Sydney for $2.83 million with a long, six-month, settlement period.

The buyer could not get finance for the remainder of the purchase price, because the valuation had fallen and the sale fell through. The house was later sold to another buyer for $2.23 million.

The buyer has now been ordered by the Supreme Court of NSW to pay $458,500 (the $600,000 shortfall minus the deposit) to the vendors to make up for the fall in value.

The court found that the sale contract entitled the vendors to “recover a deficiency on resale”.