James Thornhill

Sydney

Editor @WestpacWire. News, views and insights from Australia's oldest bank. Former newswire journo with Bloomberg/Reuters, also ex-Citi.

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Articles

Lessons in success, from a four-time Olympic champion

4 days ago | westpac.com.au | Ben Young |James Thornhill |Marina Gainulina |Sarah Williamson

Ariarne Titmus knows pressure. At just 24, she’s already a four-time Olympic gold medallist and one of Australia’s most decorated athletes. But it’s her mindset, not her medals, that have really won the world over. “I've always been unafraid of chasing big goals. The worst that can happen is you try your best and don't achieve it, but the person you become along the way is more important. “Setting a goal is a skill,” she says.
"Hello? Anybody in there?" Heroes in the sky save lives as floods devastate parts of NSW

1 week ago | westpac.com.au | Ben Young |James Thornhill |Marina Gainulina |Sarah Williamson

The grateful mother later posted on social media, "I really cannot thank you guys enough for bringing my babies safely to me. It was a hell of a few days being there for my community knowing my kids were on the other side of water without me."Three days with snakesNot every rescue was a race against time. Some tested the limits of human endurance. One man survived three harrowing days stranded on his caravan roof, surrounded by floodwater and unwelcome company.
Westpac deploys real-time AI to take on scammers

1 week ago | westpac.com.au | Ben Young |James Thornhill |Marina Gainulina |Sarah Williamson

Westpac has introduced a new AI-powered call assistant aimed at tackling scams as they happen. Currently in pilot with the bank’s specialist scam and fraud team, the tool is designed to identify signs of a scam during live customer calls and support operators in responding swiftly and consistently. The clever tech can detect indications the customer may be about to transfer money to a scam, based on their phone conversation with the bank.
RBA delivers second rate cut of 2025, more expected this year

2 weeks ago | westpac.com.au | Ben Young |James Thornhill |Marina Gainulina |Sarah Williamson

The Reserve Bank of Australia has lowered interest rates for the second time this year, bringing the official cash rate down by a quarter of a percentage point to 3.85 per cent. Westpac Economics had anticipated the RBA would deliver the quarter percentage point rate cut as all measures of inflation were firmly within the central bank’s target band of 2-3 per cent.
Fashion, finance and a family legacy: Zampatti opens Australian Fashion Week

3 weeks ago | westpac.com.au | Ben Young |James Thornhill |Marina Gainulina |Sarah Williamson

It’s an hour until showtime, and one thing is clear: the anticipatory backstage buzz that crescendos with each passing minute does little to fluster Alex Schuman. At least a head taller than the swarm of models around him, Schuman displays a calm confidence amid the excitement – a quality likely honed over a career in finance, politics and now at the helm of a heritage Australian fashion label.
Meet the vigilante ex-cop who catfishes the catfish

3 weeks ago | westpac.com.au | Ben Young |James Thornhill |Marina Gainulina |Sarah Williamson

For Kylee Dennis, the fight against scammers has always been personal. A 14-year career in the police force came to an end when she traded in her badge for a different kind of stakeout: catching catfish on dating apps. The founder of Two Face Investigations is passionate about stopping romance scams – a mission borne from a close call at home.
Westpac's Miller hands down first result, urges calm amid global uncertainty

1 month ago | westpac.com.au | Ben Young |James Thornhill |Marina Gainulina |Sarah Williamson

Westpac CEO Anthony Miller says the bank is in a strong position to support customers through uncertain times, as he hands down his first half year result as CEO. Miller, who took over from Peter King last December has posted a $3.5 billion net profit excluding notable items, down one percent on the first half of 2024.
Inflation prints higher than expected but cuts still on the cards

1 month ago | westpac.com.au | Ben Young |James Thornhill |Marina Gainulina |Sarah Williamson

Headline inflation has exceeded Westpac Economics estimates, holding at 2.4 per cent for the year, but has not impacted the team’s base case of rates cutting in May. Annual trimmed mean inflation, the preferred measure of core inflation by economists and the Reserve Bank of Australia, has moderated to within the central bank’s target range to 2.9 per cent for the first time since 2021.
Fiji faces tough tariffs from a position of strength

1 month ago | westpac.com.au | Ben Young |James Thornhill |Marina Gainulina |Sarah Williamson

Fiji is facing stronger than expected headwinds following US President Donald Trump’s tariffs, made worse by a slowdown in tourist arrivals from Australia and New Zealand. Although the tariffs were reduced from a shockingly high 32 per cent to 10 per cent following Trump’s 90-day pause, Fiji is nonetheless working through its trade strategies which includes possible alternative markets for the goods it exports to the US. However, the US remains a key export market for Fiji.
From the battlefield to the boardroom: the legacy of a veteran bank CEO

1 month ago | westpac.com.au | Ben Young |James Thornhill |Marina Gainulina |Sarah Williamson

We pause this Anzac Day to reflect on the service and sacrifice of the men and women involved in war, including the 418 Bank of New South Wales (now Westpac) employees who lost their lives in WWI and WWII. Among the bank's 793 staff to enlist in WWI was Thomas Baker Heffer, a New Zealander who joined the bank aged 18. By the time he enlisted in 1915, he was relatively senior in the bank and almost 30, slightly older than most of his fellow volunteers.