Finance Industry Restructuring: Implications for Regional Australia

The Australian financial system is undergoing a period of rapid change driven by the introduction of new technologies, changes in regulation and the emergence of new competitive forces. Consumers of financial services are being faced with an array of new products and charges as individual financial institutions respond to these challenges. Some consumers in smaller regional centres have experienced a withdrawal in traditional banking services with bank branch closures. An extension of this experience to a wider range of financial services for other regional centres could have serious implications for regional economic development. This paper explores the implications of financial industry restructuring for regional Australia.