Westpac has withdrawn banking services from eight fintechs over the past year, the bank has disclosed in response to a question on notice from a Parliamentary committee.
Westpac group executive, financial crime, compliance and conduct, Les Vance, wrote to the Senate Select Committee on Australia as a Technology and Financial Centre earlier this month, explaining why it may be “unable to provide or continue to provide banking services to a particular customer or class of customers”.
“These can include management of financial crime-related risks, dealing with companies that become deregistered, fraud and certain convictions, among other,” Vance said.
He said Westpac does not consider the fintech sector to be “higher risk or out of appetite per se” but there could be “segments” of the fintech sector that operate in higher risk areas or have higher risk appetites.
The bank contacts the customer before cutting off banking services.
Vance said that when the bank is considering the risks involved in customer relationships it considers laws governing money laundering and terrorism financing, bribery and corruption, the facilitation of tax evasion, and economic and trade sanctions.