Australian regulator to lift limits on bank dividend payouts

Westpac Banking Corp was the only one of Australia's so-called 'Big Four' banks to not pay an interim dividend earlier this year, while payouts for the other three were constrained by the regulatory limit.

SYDNEY: Australia's banking regulator said on Tuesday that starting next year banks will no longer have to hold a portion of their profit back, giving the green light to higher dividends, as economic conditions improve following the coronavirus pandemic.

Banks had been asked to limit paying dividends to less than half their profit for the rest of the year, a heavy hit to investors who rely on bank payouts for their consistency in a country where around 8% of the population manage their own retirement income.