Bananas and Westpac – What do they have in common
Posted by JohnF | Posted in Banking, News | Posted on 09-12-2009
Tags: banana smoothie, banana video, westpac
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A FIERCE community backlash has forced Westpac to remove a video from its website which likened rises in mortgage repayments to the cost of banana smoothies after a storm.
The video was included in an email to customers justifying the bank’s recent interest rate hike by comparing the bank to a business selling banana smoothies.
The segment had also been posted on Westpac’s internet site on a page that explained the bank’s monster 45 basis point interest rate rise last week – an increase almost double that of the Reserve Bank’s 25 basis point rate rise.
Called “childish” and “condescending”, the video sparked outrage among news.com.au readers, receiving more than 350 comments and hundreds more not suitable for publication.
Even Prime Minister Kevin Rudd weighed in with criticism.
A Westpac spokeswoman said the video would now be removed.