Business deposits in Macquarie Bank fell heavily in the month of September 2008, a period in which the liability profile of banks varied greatly as customers responded to the enormous upheaval in global capital markets.Monthly data published by the Australian Prudential Regulation Authority on Friday shows that business deposits - the bulk of the Macquarie Bank's deposit base - fell by $1.8 billion over a single month, or 24 per cent, to $6.0 billion.Household deposits at Macquarie, however, increased by 2.6 per cent over September (or by about $40 million) to $1.7 billion.The classification "deposits" within the APRA definition for its industry statistics, as opposed to other categories of liabilities, may exaggerate the extent of any apparent outflow.Greg Ward, chief financial officer of Macquarie, said on Friday: "I'm a bit surprised at the data. I hadn't sensed that."Ward said Macquarie management data shows that over six months the bank recorded "quite strong growth" in deposits. (The bank won't publish financial statements for the half year to September for another two weeks.)The APRA data, by contrast, shows a decline of 20 per cent in business deposits for Macquarie over six months. Household deposits more than doubled over this period according to APRA, a trend that conforms to Macquarie's take.Ward said that the decline in the equity market, and especially in April, generated a shift of savings into deposits. He said on the bank's data this also showed up in the bank's cash management trust, which Ward said showed shifts in funds under management of more than $2.5 billion over several months.