"We don't need your guarantee": ANZ

Aussie Banks ready to wean themselves off the government guarantee on wholesale bank lending, ANZ Chief Mike Smith says."In my view, there'll be a natural process as debt markets normalise which will wean the banks off (it)," said Smith in a report by The Australian. "I think we'll see this happen in the next few months, as spreads between sovereign guaranteed debt and bank debt narrow to 70 basis points or less," he added.Meanwhile, despite past issuance mostly having sovereign backing, National Australia Bank chief executive Cameron Clyne said the Australian banks' move towards unguaranteed debt deals was a positive sign.Macquarie Group chief executive Nicholas Moore, on the other hand, called for a co-ordinated, global approach to removing the guarantee. "There will need to be some co-ordination among the governments of the world," said Moore.According to Reserve Bank governor Glenn Stevens, Australia's banks have raised over $100 billion in guaranteed debt since October 2008, approximately 10 percent of sovereign-backed global issuance.

Do you know more about this story? Contact us anonymously through this link.

Click here to learn about advertising, content sponsorship, events & rountables, custom media solutions, whitepaper writing, sales leads or eDM opportunities with us.