Competition is omnipresent.According to 'The Australian' of...

Competition is omnipresent.

According to 'The Australian' of Monday 29 March 2021, CBA, as a Sydney-headquartered bank, is trying to steal NAB (Melbourne HQ) business customers in Victoria.

CBA wants to become the nation's top business bank.

A strange (and costly) move given that the Victorian economy is underperforming as there's almost no immigration and every quarter Victoria is losing residents on a net basis to NSW and Queensland in particular, so the population growth of Victoria has become lower than in recent years, and may decline further now that with few lockdowns/border closures, it's easier to leave.

My guess is NAB will put up a heck of a fight.

Companies that have banked for years with NAB will be reluctant to move as they naturally consider whether the 'new boy on the block' really understands their business as NAB clearly does.

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'Commonwealth Bank’s newly formed “major client group” is aiming to push hard into rival National Australia Bank’s heartland in Victoria, to lure more business customers and ramp up engagement and competitive tension...

...The plan also includes doubling the number of business bankers in CBA branches by June and simplifying credit processes.

The competitive tussle comes as the domestic economy recovers strongly from a COVID-19-induced recession last year, and emergency measures including loan repayment deferrals and the federal government’s JobKeeper support payments end this month.

CBA major client group head Chris Williams told The Australian the bank was rolling out the new model to do more with existing customers, embark on a customer acquisition drive and expand geographically.

“We want to grow in all the different segments but have a very specific objective to grow and expand our franchise with new to bank customers, whether they be industry-specific or whether they be geographic-specific,” he said.

“A good example would be Victoria where we feel as though we can grow and expand in that area, notwithstanding they’ve been through a tough time in the last 12 months.

“We do feel that there are some customers there that we can really step up our investment in, both our people down there and our engagement in the market for particularly the larger family offices.”...'