Mac and squeeze
Macquarie has stuck its neck out on surcharging in a move that pits it against the big four banks, and CBA in particular.
When the nation’s largest bank (and largest company altogether) CBA delivered its annual results last month, chief executive Matt Comyn faced a new line of questioning from analysts. MST Financial veteran Brian Johnson said he believed Macquarie Group was CBA’s “only true competitor”. And despite the clear differences between the two companies, Comyn didn’t exactly refute the notion.
"They are a formidable competitor...we would see them in a category that's beyond, you know, a medium bank," Comyn said.
"They have a slightly different, I guess, motivation and posture. And you know, they're a good and strong competitor. And we think and worry about them at least as much as we do any other majors," he said.
Macquarie is certainly acting like a competitor to CBA at the moment — and not just in the home loan market where it has emerged as a significant and aggressive participant.
