POLICE BANK
CUSTOMER-OWNED INVESTMENT LENDER OF THE YEAR
Also known as mutual banks, customerowned banks are privately owned by their members, which means the profits are put back into the company and its products rather than being distributed to shareholders. This has earned them reputations as trustworthy alternatives to the big banks.
Police Bank, a boutique customer-owned bank with about $2.3 billion in loans, has landed in the top spot once again. Founded in 1964, Police Bank operates mainly in NSW and Tasmania, supporting emergency services personnel, their families and communities.
While it has a full suite of banking products, for investment borrowers it offers variable or fixed three-year loans and fixed five-year loans that were rated as being in the best quartile of all products in each of these categories.
Its Goldrate and Value home loans both offer variable rates of 3.34%pa, three-year fixed rates of 2.99%pa and five-year fixed rates of 3.19%pa.
“Mutual banking, any mutual or co-operative across the economy, is the business model for the time,” says Police Bank CEO Greg McKenna. “We have genuine customer obsession, member centricity and social good in our DNA and I look forward to continuing to see my bank and my sector evolve to tell that story better and grow our share of the Australian banking wallet.”
The low-rate environment and booming property prices are combining to make a highly competitive market for investment loans. It really is a borrower’s market.
“Competition is about as fierce in the mortgage market as it’s ever been,” says McKenna. “Police Bank and other mutual authorised deposit taking institutions (ADIs) are succeeding in growing our share of wallet, but naturally the majors are fighting back hard to retain business.
“So, it’s a great time to be buying or refinancing a home – rates have never been lower and likely will never be again as the economy recovers from the 2020 Covid shock.”
Like many of our other winners, Police Bank is going hard on improving its overall customer experience.
It is undertaking a digital transformation and modernisation of its technological and product offering to better suit the evolution of member expectations and needs.
“That means more flexibility in terms of transacting with us and the products we offer. By the end of the next financial year we’ll be well on the way to being a whole new bank such will be the transformation.”
Second place this year goes to
Sydney Mutual Bank, which offers customers three-year fixed principal and interest loans at 2.23%pa and variable rates of 3.47%.
Third place on the podium goes to Illawarra Credit Union. For amounts over $150,000, investors can get variable principal and interest loans at 2.99%, while three-year fixed-rate principle and interest loans are available at 2.55%.