Wednesday, 09 April 2025 11:15

Risky business

Written by The Hound

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OPINION: In the same way that even a stopped clock is right twice a day, economists sometimes get it right.

So it was when Cameron Bagrie took one look at KPMG's recently released Financial Institutions Performance Survey on banks and zeroed in on a key number that suggests banks are so risk averse in this country that they are probably stifling growth and innovation.

That number is 0.08%, the ratio of impaired asset expense to average gross loans and advances.

Bagrie says this is incredible considering the economy is supposed to have experienced the worst economic climate since the global financial crisis.

"What risk have banks been taking?" he asks.

Like Bagrie, your old mate reckons we are not going to get the desperately needed appetite to take chances in our economy if the banking sector is so risk averse.

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