Bank Australia to ban credit card gambling
Customer-owned bank to ramp up responsible banking commitments from December 2020
Bank Australia has become the latest Australian bank to block gambling transactions on credit cards.
The Kew-based bank wrote to its customers last week informing them that the company would be blocking all gambling and gaming transactions on credit cards from 1 December.
The ban will come into effect on transactions including poker machines, online gambling, casinos, government lotteries, horseracing and dog racing.
A survey found that 87% of customers supported such a move.
Bank Australia customers who use its debit cards will still be able to gamble.
A Bank Australia spokesperson told Business Insider Australia the move to ban gambling transactions was well supported by stakeholders and bank customers.
The spokesperson said: “As part of our commitment to responsible banking we want to make sure that the money we lend is used in ways that minimise potential harm to our customers and others. So, in line with that commitment, we don’t think it’s responsible to continue to let customers use credit card debt to gamble.
“We’ve engaged with our stakeholders and tested our position through research with customers, the overwhelming majority of whom support blocking gambling transactions on credit cards,” they added.
Bank Australia follows the likes of NAB, which became the first Australian bank to offer an option to customers to block gambling transactions via its mobile app in February.