Briefs: Hartzer talks credit costs, NAB CIO previews talks, Bankwest corrects advert and ANZ refinan

  • Brian Hartzer, the incoming head of Westpac's financial services division told a Shepparton audience last week that a "contagion of caution means businesses and consumers in Australia are finding it harder to get credit and raise capital, and that when they can get it, the price has gone up," he said. The Financial Review reported on Hartzer's talk.
  • National Australia Bank says it is one third of the way through its overhaul of many of its technology systems. The Financial Review reported a preview of a speech to be delivered at an industry conference in Melbourne tomorrow by Adam Bennett, the bank's chief information officer. The bank has provided two overviews this year of its progress on this program, most recently at its interim results briefing three weeks ago.
  • ANZ has provided an extension to the A$135 million property debt facility of construction and property development group Watpac Ltd. The bank has also increased Watpac's equipment finance facility by $15 million to $100 million. Watpac announced yesterday that banking facilities provided by ANZ had a total limit of close to $300 million.
  • Commonwealth Bank subsidiary Bankwest has agreed to make changes to a credit card advertisement that claims its Breeze MasterCard is "Australia's cheapest credit card". The Australian Securities and Investments Commission said the advert was likely to mislead as the card was the cheapest only when compared with cards offered by banks, but credit unions and other financial institutions offered cheaper cards.