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Jessica Darnbrough
Australia’s lending sector will continue to see consolidation, Council of Mortgage Lenders chief executive officer Kevin Conlon has claimed.
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Speaking at the Australian Lending Summit last week, Mr Conlon said the aggregation of some of Australia’s lenders was both imminent and necessary.
“While we must give thanks to the big four for helping Australia to survive the global financial crisis in such good shape, the fact is we need greater choice and competition in the lending sector,” he said.
“No one mutual, credit union or non-bank is strong enough to inject the level of competition that is required, which is why these lenders need to aggregate and create a fifth pillar.”
While Mr Conlon said creating a fifth pillar was “easier said than done” and unlikely to happen any time soon, he did say he expects to see greater consolidation in the lending space.
“We have already seen a lot of consolidation in this space in recent years and I think this trend will continue. If that consolidation involves smaller companies coming together to form a larger company that has size, scale and respect in the marketplace, then that is good for the industry.”
