Bank employees have called for a royal commission to restore the public's confidence in the sector.

• COMMENT

Head for the hills - the nightmare scenario that our banks have long feared may be about to come to pass. But their share prices tell a different story.

ANZ has sacked a "small" group of bankers for taking illegal drugs and recently let another staff member go for sexually harassing a woman.

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The banks can't stop it. The Liberal Party's opposition has been bulldozed by the Nationals.

David Murray, the former Commonwealth Bank chief executive and head of the financial system inquiry, said any compensation tribunal or banking inquiry without safeguards would be "dangerous territory".

A sweeping inquiry into Australia's banking and financial system appears inevitable, with a second Nationals MP confirming he is ready to cross the floor and deliver the final vote needed to establish the probe.

They've investigated Australia's butter industry, drug trafficking, and most recently, trade union corruption - but we are not going to have a Royal Commission into the banks in this term of government.

Retirement village giant faces two separate class actions from former residents.

New laws holding bank executives to greater account for scandals and misconduct should be broadened to cover other financial services operators, as well as to conduct causing harm to consumers, a senate committee has urged.

The pressure is on Australian banks to keep up with customer's growing use of smartphone apps to pay for in-store and online purchases.

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A group of billionaires gathered with a clutch of the country's most senior bank executives and captains of Australia's $2 trillion superannuation industry on Thursday to discuss a major change in the financial system.

Chairmen of two of the country's biggest banks have sounded a warning over the future threat from global technology giants trying to muscle into Australia's highly profitable banking industry.

Treasurer Scott Morrison will call in Australia's banks on Thursday in a bid to head off a backbench push for a banking royal commission.

A Gold Coast businessman has had his assets frozen and his investment company has been forced into receivership for allegedly running an unregistered scheme.

Australian cities are among the most advanced in the world in dumping cash in favour of digital payments, helped by a surge in "tap-and-go" purchases, according to new research.

• COMMENT

What's your bank loyalty worth? The better part of $5 billion a year.

After being a serial source of disappointment when it was owned by National Australia Bank, Clydesdale Bank has delivered better news for its shareholders, flagging a dividend payment after booking its first profit in five years.

A former banker once celebrated by National Australia Bank for his work with customers has appeared in court charged with defrauding more than $800,000 from the lender over four years.

APRA has urged Australia's banks to be more cautious when estimating how much money their home loan customers need to live on.

Khristina McLaughlin is seeking $53 million from Macquarie Group and her former boss in a sexual harassment complaint.

ANZ Bank and National Australia Bank traders must undergo face-to-face training in ethics and how to look after their customers' interests, under deals struck with the corporate watchdog.

The country's biggest banks appear resigned to the prospect a high-powered inquiry sooner or later, and are making preparations to minimise the disruption on their businesses.

Outgoing Perpetual chief Geoff Lloyd maintains active fund managers in Australia still have a bright future, despite the threat from global rise of passive investment funds.

The Reserve Bank is warning banks they risk facing further regulation if they fail to address retailers' concerns over the mounting cost to merchants from tap-and-go payments made on debit cards.

The U.S. economy is heading into 2018 with strong momentum that's likely to boost wages and inflation more broadly, requiring the Federal Reserve to raise interest rates four times next year, Goldman Sachs Group Inc. economists said in a research note.

Westpac's business banking chief David Lindberg says calls for the government-backed bank to help smaller firms access credit are misplaced, arguing lending to small firms booming.

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Financial services firms are actively exploring how they can use blockchain to save costs and remove the existential threat it poses.

A top Westpac trader has claimed that when he said "I'm going to f--k the rate set" he really meant other banks could be manipulating one of Australia's key interest rates.

The corporate watchdog says it will look into any potential risks to consumers from the boom in buy now, pay later payment platforms such as Afterpay.