Andrew Hooker won't say who he banks with but isn't worried that the billion-dollar legal case he is taking against New Zealand's major banks will force him to stash his cash under a mattress.

ANZ's Truckometer indicator is pointing to a tepid start to the year and a risk of recent history repeating, where short-term surges in momentum are followed by a slump.

An Auckland woman says she is owed $10,000 in excessive bank default fees after she was not able to meet her mortgage repayments during a time of financial hardship.

The NZIER shadow board thinks on balance the Reserve Bank should keep the official cash rate on hold at 2.5 per cent tomorrow, but compared with six weeks ago there is less support for a cut and more for a hike.

More than 10,000 people have registered to join a billion dollar legal case against New Zealand's major banks in less than 24 hours.

The Reserve Bank of Australia's computer systems have fallen victim to cyber hacking in at least two sophisticated online attacks.

A billion-dollar lawsuit against New Zealand's banks could have an impact on their bottom line profits but the banks' lobby group says it has doubts over the claim gaining traction.

A banking expert says a bid to take a billion-dollar class-action lawsuit against New Zealand's banks is ambitious and the amount claimable appears to be inflated.

The financial markets see no chance the Reserve Bank will raise the official cash rate on Thursday, so their focus will be on how the accompanying monetary policy statement describes the balance of risks going forward.

Regulating loan-to-value ratios would not be the Reserve Bank's favoured option, believes the Bankers' Association.

The Reserve Bank has released a consultation paper on the macro-prudential instruments it wants to add to its toolbox.

Looks like details of the long-awaited Mighty River Power float are set to be released on Monday with the Government raring to go after receiving the all clear from the Supreme Court.

The higher the exchange rate is, the lower interest rates can be, writes Brian Fallow. Asset price inflation, in the Auckland housing market at any rate, is alive and well.

Profits in the finance sector rocketed up last year despite New Zealand's sluggish economic growth with the banks making close to $3.7 billion.

Good news, bad news - Fisher Funds buying Tower's investment business means it will stay local, but there'll be less competition.

Today's banks are complex. Over the years they have grown from small retail operations into sprawling financial institutions, along the way acquiring other businesses, inheriting product lines and processes.

Another company linked to Dame Jenny Shipley is under pressure and may be forced to stop operating by September if it cannot meet new Reserve Bank requirements.