Westpac hobbled by spending needs as Australian banks adjust to pandemic economy

SYDNEY: Westpac Banking Corp lags rivals as its dated systems is forcing it to spend, rather than save, while profit margins are eroded by record-low interest rates, investors said after Australia's biggest banks issued earnings and trading updates.

A sprawling organisation, aging software and convoluted procedures have been Westpac's main enemy, investors said, leading to record fines due to breaches of anti-money laundering law and market-share losses in mortgages, its main product.