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In its “record-breaking” full year results, a customer-owned bank has not only passed the $1bn benchmark in assets under management, but was the fastest growing Australian home loan lender in fiscal year 2019.
According to APRA banking statistics, Tasmania-based Bank of us exhibited 19.7% growth in mortgage volumes over the year to June. While HSBC, Bank of Sydney, and Bank of China each charted a higher rate of growth in Australian home lending, they are each foreign-owned.
The increase saw Bank of us’ loan portfolio grow by $145m over the year, resting at $849m by year’s end. The increased revenue from the strong loan book growth saw the lender achieve an after-tax profit of $2.3m, up over 40% from the year before.
According to CEO Paul Ranson, the growth was closely linked to digital advancements.
He said, “This year we implemented a new electronic loan processing system, enabling us to handle 30% more loans with no additional resources, while maintaining a very high Net Promoter Score from borrowers of over 70.”
Next year, Bank of us will celebrate its 150th anniversary, following its December 2017 rebrand.
“We’re the oldest customer owned banking institution in Australia. Our original purpose was to provide housing finance to Tasmanians so they could build their own homes,” said Ranson.
“Now, we’re now in the enviable place of being able to hold true to our original purpose and deliver a full range of competitive banking products and services.
“We believe that Tasmanians deserve the opportunity to bank with a locally owned and operated customer owned bank. We intend to remain customer owned, operating our business within Tasmania and maintain our focus on placing people at the heart of banking.”
