here&now

Exciting milestone on the horizon

In just a few short days we will hit the largest milestone in our merger to date – the integration of our computer systems. For our members, this means we are truly operating as a one credit union, with a single branch network, call centre, website and Internet Banking system.

Of course, there is one piece still required to complete the picture – our new name. The Board is currently finalising a name to be put forward to members for a vote, and we’ll provide more information on this process in the very near future.

Until this happens, we’ve implemented an interim brand consisting of both heritage logos which is a temporary solution to signify that we are operating as one credit union.

There will be some interruptions to our services (link to service interruptions page) as we complete the integration of our computer systems on the weekend of 12-13 March 2011. It’s important you take note of these interruptions and arrange any transactions around these outages.

I’m pleased to say that you’ll find a fresh-look blog on our new website, which will provide you with the opportunity to talk to me and some of our knowledgeable staff members about almost any subject related to our credit union.

I would like to thank you all for your support and patience to date in what has been a very satisfying journey as we strive to create a member-owned alternative to the major banks.

Peter

Welcome to 2010

Welcome to 2010. It’s sure to be a busy year for the credit union and our members, and we’ve already hit the ground running.

Since the official merger on 1 December we’ve been working hard to start the process of bringing together the two divisions of our new credit union. Our members have shown overwhelming support for the merger, and have had plenty of questions about what changes they’ll see by the end of the year.

The short answer is that we know a lot will change, but the exact changes and timing are still being discussed. While few details have been decided, we do know that our new credit union will have an increased ability to help our members.

A great opportunity

The new credit union – which will be named later this year – will be operating in a unique landscape that will give us some fantastic opportunities to develop ties with new communities and new members. We have the chance to create something new; something that honours where we’ve come from, while having the freedom to start afresh.

Once the merger is complete we’ll have a credit union that has a better capacity to help members over a range of life stages and lifestyles, but stays true to what credit unions are.

I really want both members and non-members to gain a better understanding of what it means to be part of a credit union. The vast majority of new members come to us because of the products we offer, not because of who we are or the way we treat our members. It’s only when people become members that they begin to understand our ethos and really value our focus on them as members and owners, rather than customers.

Member centricity

Everyone in our credit union – from the Board of Directors to the staff in our branches – is passionate about putting our members at the centre of what we do (to paraphrase some Australian Central advertising). Our current members understand this, but we want non-members to know this too – we want to become synonymous with friendly, personalised banking that benefits everyone and offers a range of people the products they desire.

This idea of ‘member centricity’ is about examining every part of our credit union and every decision we make from our members’ perspective. Thinking about how decisions will impact members is always important within credit unions, but it’s going to be vital as we make decisions big and small over the next few months.

Changes

While our members will see a great deal of changes over the next 6-12 months, the truth is that we’re always changing. Our members and the wider market demand new products, new ways of doing business, new tools for them to access us and their money. If we never changed then we wouldn’t have many of the things we now have: Visa cards, Internet Banking, even accepting members outside of certain industry groups or unions.

Once our two divisions are integrated, our members will have access to an improved range of products, more branches and the same service and value they’ve come to expect.

It’s certainly going to be a busy year.

Peter Evers
Chief Executive

Frauds and scams net $36 million a year

$36 million is a lot of money and according to an article on The Age website that’s how much Australians lose every year to “Nigerian scams”.

These sort of scams have been around for years and have moved with the times to follow people on to the Internet, which has given scammers a lot more opportunities to take victims’ money. While there are plenty of variations, the basic ideas are pretty simple – con artists trick people into sending them money, usually overseas, in return for the promise of receiving money or goods.

Some of the stories given are quite elaborate, including money trapped in bank vaults, inheritances from a deceased relative, ‘exclusive’ share offers, multi-billion dollar lotteries and the need to pay bribes to get money through Customs. At the end of the day, they’re all after the same thing: to take your money.

The Australian Competition and Consumer Commission has a great site called SCAMwatch that has up-to-date information on scams and stories of people who have been trapped.

While it might seem daunting to know there are people out there looking to take your money, there are some relatively simple precautions you can take to help keep your money safe.

• Don’t reply to any emails or letters from people you don’t know.
• If someone asks for your credit card or bank account details to process a ‘prize’ or commission then it’s likely to be scam.
• Keep track of your accounts using internet banking and regularly checking your statements.

A growing trend is scamming people who are lonely or looking for companionship. Victims often receive an email from someone claiming to be from Eastern Europe who is looking to find love in Australia. After a few weeks email conversations, there’s often a request to either send money to help pay for an airfare or to help them transfer money out of the country.

Be very careful of sending money to anyone you meet on the internet.

Of course, scammers still use traditional ‘junk mail’ to fleece people of their money. Plenty of people - including my own mum! - get letters in the mail about lottery wins, money in foreign banks and dodgy pyramid schemes.

If you get receive something that seems a little suspect, follow the old adage: if something seems too good to be true, then it probably is.

Keep up pressure to remove pokies

It was exciting to see this story when I got to work this morning. We’ve all heard the horror stories of people who have become addicted to poker machines – people can lose their car, house and even their families.

While there’s always going to be gambling in our society, poker machines have become an easy cash cow for pubs, clubs and, sadly, many community groups. According to some figures in 2003, more than 10% of the world’s poker machines are in Australia. It’s not uncommon to see hotels open at 9am, and I don’t think people are going there solely for breakfast.

It’s not just the users of poker machines who are addicted – governments, hotels and local groups are addicted to the revenue they bring in. This is one of the biggest obstacles to be overcome if we want to remove poker machines, simply because the taxes and levies on poker machines go into government coffers to be used for healthcare, roads, police, etc.

On top of this, many local sports club use poker machines as an income stream and the removal of the machines would have a big impact on the services they provide- something of vital importance when more of us need to get on the playing field.

So what’s the solution? It would be nice to say that we could simply remove pokies and redirect the money spent on community and family support into healthcare, community groups, police, etc but that isn’t a guaranteed solution. There will always be something else to spend money on, or other forms of gambling to take the place of pokies.

The changes proposed today are a good start to easing the problem. Gradual tax increases won’t legislate against poker machines, but they’ll slowly make them less profitable while still giving hotels and clubs time to develop new business and revenue models.

Being a financial institution, we see a lot of people suffering the after-effects of pokie addiction and it can take years to get back on track after spiralling out of control. The sooner we can come up with a real solution, the better it will be for all concerned.

If you or someone you know has a gambling problem, help is available in all states and territories.

Retirement – what are you planning?

There was an interesting article in yesterday’s Australian Financial Review (not online, unfortunately) about the lifestyles Australian retirees are adopting. According to the article, far from enjoying their twilight years “SKI-ing” (“spending the kids’ inheritance”) around 62 per cent plan to leave money to their children.

One of the biggest reasons for this is the continual tightening of the real estate market, which many parents fear will prevent their children from getting established. Of course, parents don’t necessarily have to give their children money to help them enter the property market, with products like our Family Guarantee. Nevertheless, a lot of us (parents, that is) feel like giving our kids the best of everything – including the best headstart in their adult lives – is something we want to do.

So what do you have planned for your retirement, if you’re getting close to that age? Are you going to buy a caravan and travel the country, or slow things down and become the unofficial babysitter for any future grandchildren?

It will be interesting to see what people think.

Cheers
Greg