Great Southern Bank, formerly Credit Union Australia, is one of Australia's largest customer-owned banks with corporate offices in

Brisbane Brisbane ( ; ) is the List of Australian capital cities, capital and largest city of the States and territories of Australia, state of Queensland and the list of cities in Australia by population, third-most populous city in Australia, with a ...

Sydney Sydney is the capital city of the States and territories of Australia, state of New South Wales and the List of cities in Australia by population, most populous city in Australia. Located on Australia's east coast, the metropolis surrounds Syd ...

, and

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. It provided banking services to more than 400,000 Australians in 2023.

Overview

Great Southern Bank is a

mutual bank A mutual bank is a cooperative financial institution owned by its depositors or customers. They include mutual organization, mutual savings banks and cooperative banking. Unlike traditional banks, which prioritize shareholder profits, mutual banks ...

with origins dating back to 1946. It has branches located around Australia, predominantly on the east coast. Great Southern Bank has an Australian-based contact centre in

. It is part of the Customer-owned Banking Association, the industry association for mutual banks, credit unions, and building societies, adhering to the association's Customer-owned Banking Code of Practice. It is also a member of the Business Council of Cooperatives & Mutuals (BCCM). The bank changed its name from CUA to Great Southern Bank in June 2021.

History

The earliest precursor to Great Southern Bank was officially founded in 1946. It was created through the amalgamation of several small

Queensland Queensland ( , commonly abbreviated as Qld) is a States and territories of Australia, state in northeastern Australia, and is the second-largest and third-most populous state in Australia. It is bordered by the Northern Territory, South Austr ...

based credit unions in the 1940s and had around 180 members in total. Since then, through the joining of more than 171 credit unions, it has become the biggest customer-owned bank in Australia.Customer Owned Banking Association
"Submission to the Financial System Inquiry"
, ''Customer Owned Banking Association'', March 2014

Timeline

Partnerships

* Principal partner –

Brisbane Heat The Brisbane Heat are an Australian professional franchise men's and women's cricket team, competing in Australia's domestic Twenty20 cricket competition, the Big Bash League (BBL). The Heat are the successors of the Queensland Bulls who playe ...

BBL and WBBL cricket teams * Co-Major Partner -

Carlton Football Club The Carlton Football Club, nicknamed the Blues, is a professional Australian rules football club based at Princes Park (stadium), Princes Park in Carlton North, Victoria, Carlton North, an inner suburb of Melbourne in Victoria, Australia. The c ...

's AFL and AFLW teams * Community Partner -

Mission Australia Mission Australia is a national Christian charity that provides a range of community services throughout Australia. It has its roots in the Brisbane sector of The British and Foreign Bible Society’s sub-committee, The Colporteur Society (1869), ...

Naming rights Naming rights are a financial transaction and form of advertising or memorialization where a corporation, person, or other entity purchases the right to name a facility, object, location, program, or event (most often sports venues), typical ...

sponsor of

Penrith Stadium Penrith Stadium, currently known as BlueBet Stadium for sponsorship reasons, is a rugby league and association football stadium located in Penrith, New South Wales, Australia. The 22,500 capacity venue is the home ground for the Penrith Panthe ...

from 2006 until 2010

Recent recognition/awards

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– Worlds Best Banks 2022 * Canstar – Customer-Owned Institution of the Year winner 2022 * Canstar – Savings 2022

References

External links

Official website
{{Banking Industry in Australia, state=collapsed Banks established in 1946 Credit unions of Australia 1946 establishments in Australia B Lab-certified corporations in Australia