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Australia: Reserve Bank overhauls credit card competition

By  |  March 14, 2014

The Reserve Bank of Australia is being applauded by consumer advocates and retailers alike for its decision to overhaul credit card regulations, a move expected to boost competition, say reports.

The overhauls would mean that the Australian Prudential Regulation Authority would no longer oversee issuers of credit cards, looking to lift restrictions on companies that want to issue the cards.

BIS World senior analyst Caroline Finch told reporters that “for anybody who’s not already a bank it’s quite hard to get yourself registered as a bank.”

Under current guidelines, companies must be registered as a bank to issue a card.

The proposed reforms follow two public consultations on the matter as authorities examine the credit card industry.

Full Content: Yahoo Finance

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