Distrust of Australia's banks will continue unless the "drip feed" of industry scandals ends and banks own up to problems rather than hoping bad news can be kept from the public eye, regulators have warned.

Three of the country's most powerful financial regulators on Friday called on banks to be more open when things go wrong, after a series of scandals in recent years put the spotlight on the industry's culture.

They highlighted that many of the problems dogging banks today occurred several years before the news became public, and this further fuelled the negative perception of banks.

Reserve Bank deputy governor Guy Debelle said the "drip feed of issue after issue after issue" across many parts of the financial sector had exacerbated public distrust.