(Adds information on the exit of an aligned company, loan losses linked to the pandemic)

July 30 (Reuters) – The Commonwealth Bank of Australia (CBA) on Thursday announced that it is forecasting additional provisions of A $ 300 million ($ 215.67 million) in its annual results to address clients of its banking operations. board aligned.

The country’s largest lender ended its aligned financial advisory business last year after a government-backed investigation into the financial sector in 2018 revealed widespread systematic misconduct, prompting the CBA and its’ big four »Banks to commit large sums to compensate customers.

The ABC said in a statement that the total remediation provisions recognized to date now stand at AU $ 834 million, largely consisting of customer refunds.

The coronavirus crisis has added additional pressure on Australian banks, which are now seeing their margins threatened due to record interest rates, rising unemployment and rising bad debts.

The Sydney-based lender had booked A $ 1.5 billion in provisions in the third quarter to cover future loan losses from the pandemic.

The ABC is expected to release its annual results on August 12. ($ 1 = AU $ 1.3926) (Report by Shriya Ramakrishnan in Bengaluru; edited by Sandra Maler and Muralikumar Anantharaman)