Briefs: Optus tackles Suncorp's IT, Liberty moves into insurance, 'Wolf of NAB' in court, and more

Bernard Kellerman
  • Optus Business will manage many of Suncorp's IT services, including voice, contact centre, data networks, and international and transaction services, the telco announced yesterday. Financial terms of the seven-year deal were not disclosed.

  •  Liberty Financial, a significant non-bank specialty lender, is branching out into insurance. Registered earlier this year as LFI Group, Australia's newest insurer yesterday promoted a "partnership with CGU" to market home and motor vehicle product.

  • Former NAB foreign exchange trader Lukas Kamay has blamed a 'Wolf of Wall Street' culture at major investment banks for driving him to commit what the Commonwealth Director of Public Prosecutions called Australia's worst ever insider trading scheme. As the AFR notes, Kamay also tried to pin the blame on his Australian Bureau of Statistics conspirator Christopher Hill for approaching him with the idea, leading Justice Elizabeth Hollingworth to observe that this was not a "dazzling display" by the young ex-banker, who failed to accept responsibility for his actions and is now facing up to ten years' jail.

  • The results from this year's St George Bank Annual Christmas Consumer Spending Report reveal that 23 per cent of Australians are "not worried" about costs this Christmas, an increase of 5 per cent compared to last year. Nearly half (44 per cent) said they had already purchased their gifts earlier in the year to reduce their Christmas money worries. Nonetheless, there are some opposing forces: "low interest rates and rising house prices are boosting wealth, but wages are not growing very strongly. We're going to have to wait and see how things pan out over the next few months," said St George economist Janu Chan.