Two of Australia’s biggest banks were hit by separate compliance scandals on the same day, in a grim coincidence for a sector still rebuilding trust after years of misconduct findings.
Australia’s corporate regulator has launched civil penalty proceedings against Commonwealth Bank in the Federal Court, alleging the country’s largest lender overcharged about 42,000 business customers in fees they were never told about.
The Australian Securities and Investments Commission said customers of CommBiz, the bank’s flagship online platform for medium-to-large businesses, were overcharged roughly A$8.5 million between November 2020 and May 2025. It alleged the platform’s terms and conditions failed to clearly disclose all fees charged on direct debit and direct credit transactions, leaving customers paying extra charges linked to money moving in and out of their accounts.
ASIC said the bank had received customer complaints about the issue from at least 2015, and that a 2016 internal audit had identified overcharging problems and required corrective action.
Commonwealth Bank said it had self-identified the matter, reported it to the regulator and fully cooperated with the investigation. It added, however, that it does not accept the way some of the allegations have been framed and expects to defend certain aspects of the claim.
Hours earlier, National Australia Bank signed an enforceable undertaking with the Fair Work Ombudsman after admitting it had underpaid almost 66,000 current and former staff over 14 years. The bank agreed to pay A$127 million in wages and entitlements, plus A$34 million in interest and A$8 million in superannuation — a total bill of about A$169 million.
The underpayments, which ran from 2012 to this year, affected casual, part-time and full-time workers in every state and territory. Individual back payments range from under A$5 to more than A$87,000, with an average of about A$1,900. The bank has already repaid at least A$155 million.
NAB will also make a record A$2 million contrition payment to the Commonwealth — the largest ever included in a Fair Work Ombudsman enforceable undertaking. The ombudsman blamed poor record-keeping, outdated payroll technology and weak oversight, noting the bank first reported the problems itself in late 2019 but was still underpaying staff when a further review was carried out in 2024.
The twin disclosures land in a week when the head of rival ANZ publicly warned that AI-driven job displacement could trigger a global crisis without coordinated government action — a reminder that Australia’s banks face pressure on several fronts at once.
Sources: Reuters — “Australian watchdog sues CBA over allegations of overcharging customers” (https://www.reuters.com/legal/government/australian-watchdog-sues-cba-over-allegations-overcharging-customers-2026-11-11/) and AAP — “NAB hit with $169m bill for underpaying 66,000 staff” (https://aapnews.aap.com.au/news/nab-hit-with-169m-bill-for-underpaying-66-000-staff)
