Australian banks to refund $60.5m to customers hit by high fees

Over 1 million customers have been moved into low-fee accounts, ASIC said.

Banks in Australia are set to refund over $60.58m (A$93m) to over 920,000 customers for charging high fees to those “who can least afford it,” according to authorities.

The 21 banks involved have reportedly charged excessive fees on transaction accounts, affecting potentially millions of Australians, according to a report by the Australian Securities and Investments Commission (ASIC) released on 29 July 2025.

Over $21.49m (A$33m) in fees have already been refunded to over 150,000 customers, ASIC said.

A further $39.09m (A$60m) is set to be refunded to over 770,000 customers.

Over 1 million customers have been moved into low-fee accounts, saving an expected $32.57m (A$50m) in future yearly fees.

A previous report by ASIC on banking fees found that the lenders have kept at least two million low-income Australians, who rely on Centrelink payments, in high account fees.

“It should not take an ASIC review to force A$93m in refunds or make banks assess their processes to ensure the trust and expectations placed in them are justified,” said ASIC chair Joe Longo, who noted that there is work to be done despite improvements banks have made.

‘We expect banks to regularly assess product design and distribution to ensure customers have the most appropriate products and that they are given the support they need,” Longo said in its statement.

Three of the four banks featured in ASIC’s initial report have committed to provide refunds of bank fees to a broader group of low-income customers who have been in high-fee accounts.

A further seven banks have improved processes whilst an additional nine banks have made it easier to access low fee accounts, ASIC said. 

(US$1 = A$1.53; as of 30 July 2025, Google, from Morningstar)