Teachers Mutual Bank Limited finalises merger with Pulse Credit Union Limited

1 November 2021: Teachers Mutual Bank Limited, one of the largest mutual banks in Australia, has today announced the completion of the legal transfer to formalise its merger with Pulse Credit Union Limited. The final step of data migration will occur this week across 5 and 6 November 2021.

From today, 6,000 Pulse Credit Union Limited members who voted strongly in favour of the proposed merger (98%) are now part of either Health Professionals Bank or UniBank. Both are divisions of Teachers Mutual Bank Limited.

The transition is a natural fit as Pulse Credit Union Limited traditionally provided banking services to essential workers in the healthcare industry such as nurses, midwives, doctors and hospital staff. Previous mergers with La Trobe University Credit Union and Melbourne University Credit Union allowed Pulse Credit Union Limited to extend the provision of banking services to members in the tertiary education sector, creating an additional alignment to UniBank.

Head of Industry Partnerships, Jim O’Connell, said: “Preliminary merger discussions with Pulse Credit Union Limited indicated that we shared a dedication to providing high-quality, personalised member experiences. As we worked through the due-diligence process, the connection between our two mutuals went from strength to strength, despite the challenges brought by the Delta variant of the COVID-19 pandemic. Completing an interstate merger while borders are closed is not an easy task, but our teams demonstrated passion throughout the entire process and it’s fantastic to have 6,000 new members to serve.”

All of the new Health Professionals Bank and UniBank members have access to a wider range of products and services such as a mobile banking app, unlimited ATM withdrawals, NPP, and the opportunity to apply for credit cards. In addition, the new members also have the opportunity to access socially responsible mortgage and deposit products. Any new retail mortgage or deposit product opened at Teachers Mutual Bank Limited is a Certified Responsible Investment by the Responsible Investment Association Australasia, at no extra cost.

Chief Executive Officer, Steve James, said: “We are delighted to be completing our merger with Pulse Credit Union Limited and growing the number of healthcare and tertiary education members we serve in Victoria. While the Australian economy has remained fairly stable throughout the waves of the COVID-19 pandemic, the low-rate environment and push for digital offerings has put increased pressure on some of the smaller credit unions.”

“As we draw closer to the end of 2021, our Board of Directors are optimistic about future merger opportunities with like-minded mutuals. At Teachers Mutual Bank Limited, our purpose is to provide good banking, for those who do good and we are so proud to serve over 220,000 members across Australia working in the essential niches of education, emergency services and healthcare.”