The Australian government is considering the latest attempt by non- bank lender FirstMac to secure approval, at least in principle, to snare control of a niche bank. Kim Cannon, managing director of FirstMac, yesterday confirmed the Queensland-based lender approached the treasurer, Scott Morrison, on its interest in late August. The owner of the loans.com.au discount home loan brand, FirstMac aims to ride any emerging wave of pro-competition activism amid public and parliamentary disdain for big banks. Last week's hearings of the House of Representatives Standing Committee on Economics with big bank CEOs touched on political interest in following the UK path of easing the entry of new banks, many of which have fintech roots.The control or outright ownership of an authorised deposit taking institution in Australia is a long held goal of Cannon, who has steered the privately held FirstMac to a prominent position in consumer finance over 30 years. Cannon attracted prominent coverage in weekend tabloids published by News Australia for his wish to water down a long standing policy limiting the stake of any one person or non-bank entity to 15 per cent of a bank (though there are precedents for relaxing the rule).Over the last decade or more FirstMac has sunk capital into listed smallcap ADIs, the firsts of which was The Rock Building Society, later taken over by MyState Financial. Most recently FirstMac has staked a claim on former credit union Goldfields Money.A takeover of any affordable small ADI may be on Cannon's radar.  An outright entry onto the Australian market as a newly minted bank is another option if Morrison and APRA cater to this aim.