APRA holding statement on points of presence revisions.pdf

25th of October 2022

APRA holding statement on points of presence revisions
“Although there are no legal or prudential requirements for Australian banks to own or operate
branches  or  ATMs,  APRA  collects  and  publishes  data  each year  on  bank  branches,  ATMs
and other customer service facilities as part of its financial sector data col ection role. APRA’s
reporting standard ARS 796.0 Points of Presence includes a definition of a bank branch, which
is  only  used  for  data  collection  purposes  and  does  not  place  any  obligations  on  banks  in
regards to whether – or how – they operate branches.
In response to questions about the continued appropriateness of the definition, APRA made
inquiries into the data reported by banks, credit unions and building societies for inclusion in
the annual authorised deposit-taking institutions (ADI) points of presence statistics publication.
This included consideration of different branch structures and their alignment to the reporting
standard definition. As a result, the latest statistics contain a number of revisions, including
the recategorisation of 168 branches as “other face-to-face”. In cases where branches were
staffed  and  offered  customers  the  ability  to  withdraw  or  deposit  cash  using  ATMs,  APRA
considered that those facilities continued to meet its definition of a branch.
In line with recommendation seven of the Regional Banking Taskforce, APRA will commence
a review of its points of presence collection, including the branch definition, when the points
of presence collection is next subject to public consultation in early 2023.”