Briefs: Bendigo Bank cuts credit card rates, broker pleads guilty to loan fraud, Google gets into th

Banks rarely cut their credit card rates, so it is worthy of note that Bendigo has lowered the rate on its Platinum card by 100 basis points to 18.99 per cent and cut the rate on its Basic Black card by 25 bps to 12.24 per cent. It has also reduced the rate on its Just Business MasterCard by 65 basis points to 13.99 per cent. Card issuers have been competing for business over the past year with more generous balance transfer and introductory rate offers but Bendigo Bank's executive for retail, Dennis Bice, said the bank wanted to do something for existing customers as well as new ones.
Melbourne finance broker Mohamed Radhi Ahmed has pleaded guilty to a charge of conspiring to defraud financial institutions. The charge relates to Ahmed's role at Myra Home Loan Pty Ltd, trading as Myra Financial Services, where he created false documents in support of at least 350 loan applications between 2009 and 2011. Twelve lenders were targeted by the conspiracy.
Google has turned its attention to the financial comparison business, with the launch of a service called Google Compare. FinExtra reported that the site features car 14 insurers offering car insurance in California. More states will follow, according to the report, along with information on credit cards, savings accounts and other financial products.