CommBank walks back on account migration

Select accountholders would have been moved to a tier that has an A$3 withdrawal fee.

The Commonwealth Bank of Australia (CommBank) is pausing on a plan to move select customer accounts to a tier that will charge them A$3 to withdraw money.

Angus Sullivan, CommBank group executive for retail banking services, said that they “have done a poor job of communicating this change to our customers.”

“[We] are changing our approach and we are pausing the migration,” Sullivan said in a statement posted at the CommBank website.

CommBank had earlier announced that customers who have a Complete Access account will be moved to Smart Access accounts in January 2025. The Smart Access account has a withdrawal fee of A$3.

The bank— which is Australia’s largest branch network— plans to contact Complete Access account customers over the next six months to “communicate suitable product options.”

Sullivan clarified that the changes do not affect around 9 million customers who do not have a Complete Access account.

“Each of our branches has fee-free ATMs and we have a moratorium on regional branch closures until at least the end of 2026,” he added.