29 January 2019

Teachers Mutual Bank Limited will create billions of dollars of responsible investment as it becomes one of the first Australian banks to certify its retail deposits, mortgages, and wholesale funding. 

This certification from the Responsible Investment Association Australasia (RIAA) could generate more than $3.5 billion of socially responsible investment for the bank by 2021. This certification will cover deposits and mortgages for all Teachers Mutual Bank Limited brands: Teachers Mutual Bank, UniBank, and Firefighters Mutual Bank.

‘This announcement demonstrates Teachers Mutual Bank Limited’s determination to champion responsible investment. We’re acting on our values and aligning our business practices with our members’ expectations,’ stated Steve James, CEO, Teachers Mutual Bank Limited.

‘We’re not a bank that has to be forced to do the right thing for our members by regulation, our members know we work for them alone. That’s the standard our community should expect of all banks,’ said Steve James.

The bank estimates that this certification will cover a cumulative $1.3 billion of retail mortgages and deposits in 2019, $1.9 billion in 2020, and $2.7 billion in 2021.

‘At a time when more and more consumers are wanting to ensure their banking and investments are managed ethically, RIAA Certification provides certainty that an organisation has reached high standards of disclosure and performance and confirms the authenticity of their commitment to responsible banking. We congratulate Teachers Mutual Bank on meeting these requirements and delivering ethical banking for their clients,’ said Simon O’Connor, CEO, Responsible Investment Association Australasia.

This certification builds on the bank’s wholesale $1 billion dollar Debt Issuance Programme which is an RIAA certified ethical investment. $500 million of this investment was certified in June 2015 based on fossil fuel exclusions. 

This figure rose to $1 billion in 2018 with an additional $500 million investment covering exclusions in alcohol, armaments, correctional facilities, gambling, gross environmental degradation, slavery, and other harmful activities.

Combined this is over a $3.5 billion socially responsible investment opportunity for the bank.

The RIAA Certification for responsible investment products is effective as at December 1st, 2018 and will cover all new mortgage products and deposits across Teachers Mutual Bank Limited.

Media enquiries

Amanda Resurreccion
PR & Corporate Affairs Specialist
(02) 9735 9179 / 0429 421 611
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Gillian Tatt
Head of Corporate Affairs
(02) 9735 9825 / 0448 259 942
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