ASB sees credit, opex growth in 2026 after flat FY profit

ASB is upbeat on its business pipelines. (Image: NZME)

Wed, 13 Aug 2025

High-street bank ASB doesn’t see any immediate let-up in the rising total operating expenses that suppressed its 2025 annual profit, but flags the lacklustre New Zealand economy to improve in 2026 and, in tandem with that, its own credit growth.“We do think that GDP (Gross Domestic Product) is going to lift,” chief executive Vittoria Shortt said, observing that the yellow-and-black-branded lender’s performance was inextricably linked to that of the New Zealand economy.The bank foresaw 1.8% annual GDP growth in 2026, from...

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