There's a big picture review of asset trends in banking and financial services in a paper by the Reserve Bank of Australia's financial stability department published on Tuesday. And it's not too flattering for Australian banks.
The trends show that foreign banks, in aggregate, account for all the growth in assets within the banking system over the last 10 years.
While the four major Australian banks have increased their share of assets this is equal to the loss of share of regional banks, credit unions and building societies.
The RBA estimates that banks and other deposit taking institutions increased their share of financial system assets from 47.3 per cent in 1987 to 48.2 per cent in 1997 and to 51.5 per cent in 2007.
For big banks their share of assets increased from 28.6 per cent in 1987 to 29.1 per cent in 1997 and to 31.2 per cent in 2007.
Foreign banks increased their share of assets from 4.4 per cent in 1987 to 7.5 per cent in 1997 and to 11.0 per cent in 2007.
Of the 48.5 per cent of financial assets allocated to other institutions the RBA estimates that managed funds and life insurance companies account for 32.4 per cent and general insurers for 3.4 per cent.
Securitisation vehicles account for 6.9 per cent of financial system assets and "registered financial corporations", mainly finance companies and whatever remains of the old merchant banking sector, 5.8 per cent.
RBA-AssetsTable 2
Another way of looking at shifts in the financial system is ratio of financial system assets to GDP.
For banks in Australia that ratio increased from 76 per cent in 1987 to 105 per cent in 1997 and to 178 per cent in 2007.