Westpac NZ's profit halves as bad debt charges jump 15 times

Mon, 04 May 2020

Westpac New Zealand's first-half net profit halved as charges against profit for bad debts jumped more than 15 times, non-interest income dropped 29 percent and operating costs rose 13 percent.The bank's statutory net profit for the six months ended March 31 fell to $256 million from $455 million in the same six months a year earlier, with charges for bad debts rising to $211 million from $14 million.The bank didn't say how much of the increase related to its assessment of the impact of covid-19, but chief executive David...

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