3548 (2024). Arena Williams to the Minister of Commerce and Consumer Affairs

3548 (2024). Arena Williams to the Minister of Commerce and Consumer Affairs: Does the Minister agree with the Commerce Commission, in its draft report released 21 March, that “The major banks have broadly similar cost structures, can readily observe and respond to each other’s pricing, interact regularly across a range of services, and the threat of disruption by smaller providers or new entrants is low. These features of the sector potentially make it prone to accommodating behaviour between the major banks, and we cannot rule out the possibility that tacit coordination may be occurring”?

Hon Andrew Bayly: The final report will be published in August, and I will reserve judgment until then.