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Nick Hossack

Private credit is growing rapidly. Why isn't the RBA worried about a financial crisis?

Private credit now provides around 10% of Australian business debt, yet represents less than 2% of financial-system assets. The RBA says that helps explain why investor losses need not become a banking crisis.

US inflation is easing. Australia has the harder problem

Inflation remains above target in both the US and Australia, but America's underlying numbers have improved considerably more. The problem for both central banks is that labour markets are now weakening at the same time.

Explainer: Why Apple Pay is the focus of RBA regulatory supervision

Apple Pay makes paying easier, but behind every tap sits a network of banks, card schemes and technology. The RBA is examining whether control of the iPhone, wallet and customer interface affects competition in Australia's payments system.

How resilient are Australian banks to a housing crash?

The RBA has modelled an economy with GDP down 3%, unemployment at 6.3% and property prices down 20%. Despite the severe shock, Australian banks' core capital ratio falls only from 12.4% to around 11.6%.

The Coalition's Immigration Policy - Facts and Issues

The Coalition is proposing a major reduction in net overseas migration while increasing the emphasis on skilled workers. Here are the facts, economic trade-offs and political implications.

Explainer: How much does regulation cost Australia?

Commonwealth regulation may impose $115–160 billion a year in compliance and delay costs. The Government says its reforms will save $10.2 billion. But one figure is gross and the Productivity Commission's target is net.

A 20% house price fall would leave only 5% of mortgages underwater

Australian dwelling values are already 5.2% below their peak. Yet the RBA estimates that even a further 20% fall would leave only around 5% of mortgages underwater. The reason lies in Australia's unusually large housing-equity buffers.

A reflection on the source of domestic inflation - housing

Housing is now contributing more to Australian inflation than every tradable good and service combined.

The big four banks are losing mortgage market share

Australia’s four major banks still dominate home lending, but their grip on the mortgage market has been steadily weakening. APRA’s August 2026 banking statistics show ANZ, Commonwealth Bank, NAB and Westpac together holding $1.83 trillion of housing loans, equivalent to 73.0 per cent of the market.

Six key insights from the RBA Financial Stability Report

Australian banks and mortgage borrowers remain surprisingly resilient. But the RBA's latest Financial Stability Review shows the next generation of financial risks is emerging in private credit, superannuation, AI and critical technology infrastructure.

BOQ is shrinking mortgages to grow its business bank

Bank of Queensland is deliberately changing the composition of its balance sheet — shrinking its mortgage book while putting more capital into business lending. The strategy is now clearly visible in APRA’s monthly banking statistics. In August 2026, BOQ had $50.7 billion of housing loans, down 7.6 per

Australia’s inflation data now tells two quite different stories

August’s inflation shock came from fuel. But beneath the headline, three-quarters of Australia’s annual inflation contribution remains concentrated in non-tradables.

Job vacancies point to a softer private labour market

Australian job vacancies fell again in August, but the headline conceals a sharper decline in private-sector labour demand. Vacancies per unemployed worker have almost halved from their 2022 peak.