HSBC’s exit from Australia reveals the lender now facing the greatest danger

Prime Minister Anthony Albanese’s 5 per cent deposit scheme has been exposed to some risk as prices fall. Picture: Martin Ollman ANALYSIS If something was in absolutely no danger, we used to say it was “as safe as a bank”. See, banks are these rock solid institutions, full of money and setting new profit records year after year … especially in Australia. The other term we might use was “as safe as houses”. Our home values have also been steady and reliable, with consistent growth over the decades, due largely to our national obsession with owning or investing in property. Our $13 trillion love affair with property has seen the home loan space become incredibly fertile ground over the years, supporting growing numbers of banks, credit unions, mutuals and other forms of lender. MORE: Every ‘terrible’ Block room up close The result has been the situation we find ourselves in today, with more than 100 lenders in the Australian market. Our banking system is the envy of the world. Cast your mind back to the Global Financial Crisis, where bank collapses and massive taxpayer bailouts were widespread across the USA and Europe. Canstar’s Sally Tindall said the lending environment was putting...