The Australian Securities and Investments Commission (ASIC) has launched civil penalty proceedings against Commonwealth Bank (CBA), Australia’s largest lender, alleging the institution overcharged tens of thousands of business customers millions of dollars in undisclosed fees spanning nearly two decades.
The corporate regulator claims that between November 2020 and May 2025 alone, approximately 42,000 CommBiz customers were hit with roughly $8.5 million in excess charges. However, the scope of the alleged misconduct extends much further back; ASIC asserts that the misleading terms and conditions were in place from the inception of the CommBiz platform in 2006.
At the heart of the case is the way CBA disclosed fees for direct debit and direct credit payments. While customers were informed of fees associated with payments to or from third-party accounts, ASIC alleges the bank surreptitiously applied an additional “contra leg” fee for the corresponding movement of money into or out of the customer’s own CommBiz account.
ASIC Commissioner Alan Kirkland did not mince words regarding the bank’s conduct. “We allege Commonwealth Bank broke a basic promise to its business customers,” Mr. Kirkland said. “Small businesses are busy enough. They should not have to scrutinize every transaction to make sure that their bank is charging them the right fees.”
Providing an example of the impact on small businesses, the regulator noted a scenario where a firm processing payroll for 10 employees from two CommBiz accounts was charged 12 separate fees. This included the 10 expected transaction fees, plus two additional, undisclosed fees for the withdrawal of funds from the business’s own accounts.
Perhaps most damaging to the bank’s reputation are allegations of systemic failure. ASIC claims that CBA had been aware of the issue for years, noting that the bank received customer complaints as early as 2015. Furthermore, an internal audit conducted in 2016 reportedly identified the overcharging and mandated corrective action, which ASIC alleges was never effectively implemented. The regulator pointed to broader “governance failings,” arguing that the bank failed to act “efficiently, honestly and fairly.”
“What makes this particularly concerning is how long the alleged conduct went on, despite customer complaints to Commonwealth Bank pointing to a problem years earlier,” Mr. Kirkland added.
In response to the mounting pressure, CBA temporarily ceased the relevant fees in June 2025 and amended its terms in August 2025. Since February 2026, the bank has waived these fees entirely. The bank has also initiated a remediation program covering the period from December 2006 to the present, paying out over $26.4 million to approximately 93,000 CommBiz customers, including 40,000 small businesses.
The matter is now headed to court, though a date for a case management hearing has yet to be scheduled.
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