Wide Bay to begin trading as a bank

As of 1 April, Wide Bay will operate under its new name, Auswide Bank. Managing director Martin Barrett said achieving bank status and rebranding beyond the current geographic name is an important step for the company.

“It supports our program of work to revitalise our organisation and our desire to be seen as an attractive alternative to the big banks, which combines the strength of a listed, authorised deposit-taking institution with the service ethos of a mutual,” he said.

Charlton Nevis, Auswide Bank’s general manager for third party, said the bank will continue to offer “competitively-priced” and “feature-rich” home loans.

“Features such as 100 per cent mortgage offset and redraw on fixed-rate loans will continue to help differentiate us from the crowd,” he said.

“Auswide Bank is a viable option for borrowers regardless of where they live, offering broker clients nationwide access to their loans and other banking products via an Australian-based customer call centre; internet, mobile and phone banking and access to a national ATM/POS network.”

Mr Nevis said the bank’s motto is “Small things. Big difference.”

“We may be smaller than some other lenders, but we intend to make a big difference to the lending landscape,” he said.

“It’s the small things we do that make us different. Our commitment to mortgage brokers is a ‘knock your socks off’ experience and ‘speed to yes’.”