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Tasmanian-based lender MyState Limited and Bundaberg-headquartered lender Auswide Bank announced a commencement date for the long-awaited merger.
With the lodgement of the court orders with the Australian Securities and Investments Commission, Wednesday, 19 February 2025, will see the banks trading as a merged entity.
In a statement, Auswide Bank said: “This merger reflects our commitment to providing continued value to our customers and business partners. We are focused on ensuring a smooth and efficient transition for everyone involved.”
It also said that it is “business as usual” and there will be “no compromises on customer service”. Changes will also be communicated “well before they occur”.
The reasoning behind the merger was to enhance customer experience.
“The merger will enable us to invest in new technologies, expand our service network and improve the quality of our offerings, leading to better support and satisfaction for our customers,” Auswide said.
“[The] merger is part of our strategy to expand market presence and enhance service offerings. By combining our strengths and resources with MyState Bank, we will enhance our market position, broaden our service offerings and achieve greater operational efficiencies. This will enable us to better serve our customers and create more opportunities for growth.
“[The] merger is designed to streamline operations and achieve greater efficiencies. By integrating our processes and systems, we can reduce costs, improve productivity and provide more effective services to our customers,” Auswide added.
Further, according to MyState managing director and CEO Brett Morgan, brokers will benefit from the merger.
The changes will allow for “strategically important initiatives, which include things like better digital experiences for customers, but also better origination platforms and integration with brokers”, Morgan said.
“One of the opportunities we’ve identified is being able to invest once into a more modern, better loan origination platform, which will deliver better service to our broker customers and their customers. We both see the opportunity to make a step change with that and only do it once under the merger, rather than twice.”
“So, this provides both of our businesses with some additional capacity to invest in a really, critically important technology and service that is important for us to keep growing up and down the eastern seaboard.”
Growth and scalability will reportedly be top of mind for the merged lenders come 19 February.
“The combination of two high-quality and complementary businesses is consistent with the growth strategies of both organisations and brings scale advantages to the group,” Morgan said.
“We are confident the proposed merger will deliver substantial benefits to customers and shareholders.”
