The Whistleblowers Who Stared Down Threats from Australia's Biggest Bank

How the Commonwealth Bank tried to stop a royal commission by using dirt files, intimidation, threats and surveillance against whistleblowers and journalists.

When Adele Ferguson began investigating the Commonwealth Bank's financial planning division in 2013, she could not have anticipated the lengths to which the bank would go to silence her sources. What followed was a years-long campaign of intimidation, surveillance, and legal threats directed at the whistleblowers who had trusted her with their stories.

This investigation, broadcast on ABC 7.30 in November 2023, revealed for the first time the full extent of the bank's efforts to suppress the reporting that ultimately led to Australia's Banking Royal Commission. Former CBA employees who had spoken to Ferguson described being followed, having their phones monitored, and receiving threats to their careers and reputations.

The bank had compiled detailed dossiers — "dirt files" — on the whistleblowers, gathering personal information that could be used to discredit them if they went public. Some were subjected to internal investigations that appeared designed to intimidate rather than uncover genuine misconduct.

Despite the pressure, the whistleblowers held firm. Their courage, and Ferguson's persistence, ensured that the story of the Commonwealth Bank's financial planning scandal reached the public — and ultimately forced a Royal Commission that exposed misconduct across the entire financial services sector.

The investigation raised profound questions about the adequacy of Australia's whistleblower protection laws, and the willingness of powerful institutions to use their resources to silence those who speak out in the public interest.