and those in Lismore in northern NSW earlier in the year will force banks to rethink how they price loans in areas most at risk from climate change, says National Australia Bank CEO Ross McEwan.
In the short term, he emphasised NAB will support customers rebuilding, pointing to $2 million it spent refurbishing its branch in Lismore after it was knocked out for the second time in five years by massive flooding and determined it must support the local community. NAB’s thinking about pricing to reflect climate change risk comes as it offers discounts to mortgage customers whose houses meet higher energy efficiency standards.
“For us, when you think about the home lending book, the big reduction in energy in the home is energy coming in,” he said. “If we can get that renewable, scope 3 comes down dramatically, and the same with commercial property. So, we’ve got some real opportunities, but it comes back to energy.
With 43 per cent of New Zealand’s emissions coming from animals, mostly cows, he urged Kiwis to stop criticising farmers and to start working on technology-based solutions. NAB is a big lender in NZ via its BNZ subsidiary.