Teachers Mutual pushes through $10bn ceiling

A landmark figure of $10 billion in assets has been reached by Teachers Mutual Bank Ltd (TMBL), marking a celebratory sum for the mutual bank and its 55-year history. 

First established in 1966 by “a group of passionate teachers” as Teachers Credit Union – said then to include only 29 members and roughly $644 in deposits – the milestone marks significant growth for the customer-owned body. 

As stated by TMBL, the bank – following its merger with Pulse Credit Union Limited last month – now hosts roughly 227,000 members. 

Speaking of the multibillion-dollar achievement, TMBL chief financial officer Glenn Sargeant said this was the result of the bank’s implementation of a digital-first strategy.

In June, TMBL launched the digital bank Hiver, said to be targeting younger essential workers across the education, emergency and healthcare sectors. 

In October, the mutual bank revealed its intention to introduce loan products to the broker channel via Hiver. 

“Our growth in home loans has been achieved by ensuring our fixed-rate home loan offering has been competitive in the heated market, as well as revamping our home loan offering to ensure it’s simple to understand and suits our members’ needs,” Mr Sargeant added. 

The chief financial officer noted that this sum comes after September’s confirmation of $8 billion in outstanding loans, May’s retail deposit figure of $8 billion, and that during the 2021 financial year, TMBL “lent $2.3 billion in nearly 8,000 loans and approved close to 1,000 credit cards”.

TMBL chair Maree O'Halloran said: “As a mutual, having a strong asset base means we are positioned well to continue to meet our members’ needs into the future.

“While $10 billion in assets represents an important financial milestone, we also aim to maintain our track-record for consistently high levels of member satisfaction. 

“I’m immensely proud that our members continue to tell us that they remain highly satisfied with our products and services as well as the fact that we are as a socially responsible organisation.” 

[Related: Mutuals step up mortgage lending]