By guest contributor Ken Atchison, CEO, Atchison Consultants
APRA has advised the banks that they may, temporarily, use a strong capital position for increased lending. They have also indicated that the banks might reduce dividends. This approach is indicative of APRA’s focus on capital buffers without regard to the counter-cyclical role these buffers would provide in times of stress. After an extended period of subdued growth, private credit finally showed encouraging growth in January and February 2020....