ANZ Bank is confronting a historic $240 million penalty due to significant errors impacting nearly 30,000 customers who were underpaid interest on their savings accounts from August 2024 to March 2025. The Australian Securities and Investments Commission (ASIC) has accused ANZ of not applying promised bonus interest rates owing to inadequate systems and processes. This incident follows a previous situation where over 200,000 customers were affected by similar issues, demonstrating recurring weaknesses in the bank’s operations.
The penalty, pending court approval, also includes $115 million for other retail customer failings. These failings involve the mishandling of 488 hardship applications, with some ignored for over two years. These cases included customers experiencing unemployment, serious illness, family violence, or bereavement. Despite the difficult circumstances of these customers, ANZ proceeded with aggressive debt collection practices.
Further criticisms from ASIC highlight that ANZ continued to charge fees to deceased customers and created delays in helping families manage deceased estates. An additional portion of the penalty, $125 million, pertains to ANZ’s misconduct in a $14 billion government bond deal. ASIC claims that ANZ acted unconscionably by offloading substantial bond futures, leading to a dip in bond prices and potentially affecting the government’s funding capabilities.
This situation marks the seventh time in eight years that ANZ has faced legal action for misconduct. In response, ANZ Chair Paul O’Sullivan and CEO Nuno Matos have issued apologies and promised to implement significant operational reforms within the bank.
The ongoing issues at ANZ underscore a systemic problem in internal processes and customer service operations. The bank’s repeated encounters with enforcement actions highlight an urgent need for robust strategic changes to prevent further customer detriment and restore public trust. These incidents serve as a critical reminder for financial institutions about the importance of maintaining sound and customer-centric practices to avoid regulatory penalties and protect consumer interests.
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