NAB cuts business bank fees
(10 May 2019 - Australia) NAB has cut 50 separate fees paid by business customers and is set to 'radically' cut the number of fees charged across the bank as part of a plan to simplify operations.
The group is also launching a review of all fees it charges across the bank, including the retail bank, with a plan to cut the number of fees and in some cases remove the payments entirely. Business lending growth has been relatively constrained in the lead up to the mid-May Federal election. Westpac’s business loans in the half year to March 31 fell by six percent and the average of Westpac, ANZ and Commonwealth business lending edged up by a negligble 1.3 percent. NAB has bucked the trend however, increasing business lending by 5.3 per cent.
NAB is reportedly pushing for a UK-style business growth fund which will provide equity for small businesses. The Australian government has agreed to launch a fund and the opposition Labor party has also supported the move. NAB expects to inject around A$100 million, depending on the size of the fund and number of participants, to match the government and it will require other banks to make a similar contribution.
In the new finanial year NAB will cease charging a A$10 a month fee for internet banking for business clients, currently incurred by 65,000 customers in a shift that that will slug NAB up to A$8 million in revenue. Australia's largest business bank will also stop charging A$15 to retail credit card customers who are late paying their bill in one off instances, with the exception they have made the payment on time in the previous 11 months.
Rachel Slade, NAB Chief Customer Experience Officer stated "If you think about it in the longer term, it's really about customer benefit. There's obviously costs associated with dealing with complaints, with refunding fees, with customers who become so frustrated that they decide to take their business somewhere else. We have more than 400 fees across our operations and we see a big opportunity to radically reduce this number by simplifying the way we charge fees, and in many cases, removing them altogether.”
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