CBA bolsters AI investment as business lending sees major growth

In its 2026 financial year (FY26), CBA grew at or above system growth in each of its five core domestic product categories; home lending, business lending, consumer finance, household deposits and business deposits, which it said was the first time a major Australian bank had done so in 15 years.

Overall, the bank reported robust performance for FY26, with statutory net profit after tax rising 7.7 per cent to $10.9 billion, while cash net profit after tax rose 7.1 per cent to $11 billion.

Business metrics on firm ground

The stronger performance from business lending is also apparent over the longer term, with the bank reporting a 12 per cent five-year compound annual growth rate for business lending, compared with 6 per cent for home lending and 8 per cent for household deposits.

CBA’s business has more than doubled since June 2019, from $89 billion to its current standing of $180 billion.

The growth has also strengthened CBA’s position among Australian businesses, with its Business MFI share reaching 26 per cent, compared with 19.4 per cent for its nearest peer.

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The measure reflects the proportion of businesses that nominate a banking group as their main financial institution, according to RFI Global’s Atlas Business MFI Share.

Most of CBA’s lending activity comes through these customers, with more than 90 per cent of its business loans linked with a transaction account.

Business banking’s operating performance also rose 10 per cent over the year, increasing from $6.2 billion to $6.8 billion and accounting for 41 per cent of CBA’s group cash NPAT.

CBA said the stronger business lending performance came as it continued to invest in faster and more automated lending processes, with credit decision times for corporate SME lending improving by around 30 per cent for loans up to $5 million.

Technology powers development

Technology and AI development also formed a big part of CBA’s strategy in FY26, with the bank investing $2.4 billion in technology, up from $2.3 billion the previous year.

CBA said that around 80 per cent of staff were actively engaging with AI platforms, including ChatGPT Enterprise and Copilot.

Other lenders, such as Westpac, have also been investing heavily in their AI capabilities, although one survey found that many lenders’ data infrastructure was struggling to keep up with their implementation of AI.

For business customers, CBA rolled out its CommBank Companion to 100,000 small-business customers, with the AI-powered platform now supporting straight-through lending for eligible customers seeking a BetterBusiness Loan or Business Overdraft.

The bank also reported a more than twofold increase in auto-decisioned small business loans through BizExpress, while its Banker Workbench AI tool was expanded to more than 800 frontline staff.

CBA also said AI-generated use cases delivered around $200 million in gross benefits during FY26, including reinvested capacity, with around $100 million of that benefit generated incrementally during the year. It expects gross benefits from AI use cases to double in FY27 and exceed investment.

Across the bank, CBA has expanded its broader AI capabilities through a new strategic partnership with OpenAI, an expanded partnership with Anthropic, an AI Factory with AWS, and the establishment of CommBank.ai and a GenAI Studio capable of bringing more than 100 large language models into a controlled environment.

Fraud prevention strengthening

CBA’s AI investment is also being directed towards fraud and scam prevention, with the bank spending over $1 billion during FY26 to “protect our customers against fraud, scams, cyber threats and financial crime”, according to CEO Matt Comyn.

The bank has been in the headlines this year for issues surrounding fraud. In February 2026, CBA self-reported concerns to police and the corporate regulator regarding potential mortgage fraud estimated at around $1 billion.

The lender has since announced the development of an advanced agentic AI system designed to help detect fraud by monitoring more than 80 million signals each day, including transactions, card and online payments, as well as interactions across digital banking channels.

CBA sent around 40,000 alerts each day identifying suspicious card activity and issued more than 5.9 million intelligent-warning notifications for first-time payments since September 2024.

The bank has also launched a national AI, cyber security, and digital capability initiative with OpenAI, aimed at assisting 1 million small businesses.

Home lending slows as broker flows rise

CBA’s home lending growth slowed during FY26 as mortgage applications fell following the May federal budget, although the broker channel gained ground in new lending, as reported in The Adviser.

Broker-originated loans accounted for 49 per cent of new home lending, up from 46 per cent a year earlier, while total mortgage applications fell 17 per cent year on year.

CBA originated $95 billion in new home loans during FY26, up from $85 billion, while total mortgage balances, including Bankwest, reached $680 billion, up from $634 billion a year earlier. Growth slowed to 3.1 per cent in the second half, slightly below system growth of 3.3 per cent.

Investor demand was particularly weak, with applications falling 28 per cent since the May budget, compared with a 9 per cent decline among owner-occupiers.

This story was originally published by Cyber Daily's sister publication, Broker Daily.