Aussie Banks Start to Detail Cost of Levy, Step Up Criticism
- Levy is ‘bad policy’ that will help foreign banks: Westpac
- Limited options on how to handle levy: National Australia
This article is for subscribers only.
Four of Australia’s biggest lenders gave estimates of how much Australia’s new bank levy will cost them, as they stepped up criticism of the policy and vowed again to pass on the extra charges.
Westpac Banking Corp. said the levy will cost it an annual A$260 million ($194 million) after tax, while Commonwealth Bank of Australia estimated A$220 million and National Australia Bank Ltd. A$245 million, according to separate filings to the stock exchange. Australia & New Zealand Banking Group Ltd. put the cost at A$240 million, though Macquarie Bank Ltd. -- the other affected lender -- has yet to post an estimate.