News

The Mutual Bank is proud to be a part of a new Scam-Safe Accord aimed at delivering a higher standard of protection for our Members and help put scammers out of business in Australia. The Scam-Safe Accord, between Australia’s customer owned banks, mutual banks, building societies, credit unions and commercial banks is a comprehensive set of anti-scam measures across the entire industry. Announcing the Accord today, Australian Banking Association CEO Anna Bligh said the new offensive in the war on scams reflects the banking sector’s unwavering commitment to safeguarding every Australian. At the heart of the Scam-Safe Accord is a $100 million investment by the industry in a new confirmation of payee system to be rolled out across all Australian banks. Confirmation of payee will help reduce scams by ensuring people can confirm they are transferring money to the person they intend to. Read more about the Scam-Safe Accord and what it will mean for our Members here. The Mutual Bank is a member of the Customer Owned Banking Association (COBA), the industry association for Australia’s customer-owned banks whose vision is for more Australians to benefit from a resilient banking sector that is centred on people and communities.

The Mutual Bank’s Annual Christmas Appeal has been a wonderful event for our team and Members in the last few years, brightening local families’ lives at what can be a tough time of year for some. This year, we are partnering with the Susan Roskell Toy and Gift Drive to help make even more of a difference. The Susan Roskell Toy and Gift Drive is a community initiative established with the goal of providing gifts and toys to children, and their parents and carers, who have been impacted by the effects of domestic and family violence, homelessness, illness and injury. The Mutual Bank’s Chief Member Officer Matthew Dunnill said becoming a Platinum Sponsor of the well-established and respected appeal was an easy decision for the member-owned and community focused bank. “The Susan Roskell Toy and Gift Drive supports grassroots charities and community organisations, helping them to meet the growing needs of families seeking assistance at what can be a really challenging time of year,” Matthew said. “Each year the donations have steadily increased with thousands of toys going to families in need.” Todd Sheldon from Bolwarra Heights, who is also the 2022 Maitland Citizen of the Year, organises the annual event which is now in its eighth year. It all started in 2016, when a request from Maitland’s Reading Cinema to support struggling families during the festive season saw Todd, his wife Penny, and their son Lachlan, donating wrapped gifts to a Wishing Tree and from this, the idea of an annual toy drive was born. “It is heartening to see that with every year, the support from the community and small businesses has grown which enables us to support the ever-increasing number of families that are seeking support and assistance,” said Todd. “We changed the name in 2022 to honour our mum and nanny who passed away during our 2021 campaign. Mum was a catalyst for starting this and will be forever loved and missed.” As well as The Mutual Bank branches being a collection point for the gifts, the bank’s team will also volunteer over two days to help sort the donations at their Head Office in Green Hills for distribution to the charities. Community members can drop unwrapped, new toys and presents and gift vouchers into one of the large boxes at each of our seven branches – Dungog, East Maitland, Edgeworth, Maitland, Mayfield, Raymond Terrace and Rutherford.

The Mutual Bank has partnered with local professional rugby league player Sheridan Gallagher. Chief Member Officer Matthew Dunnill said the partnership with Sheridan is about contributing to the momentum of raising the profile of women’s sport and will include a campaign that features some of the homegrown talent that the bank supports, from grassroots clubs to sports stars. “Women’s rugby league is an emerging sport with increasing participation and profile,” he said. “And we want to encourage more of our community to get behind the team and other women’s sports.” “Sheridan has had an outstanding start in rugby league. We are thrilled to be a supporter of her early career journey and to be partnering with her to promote The Mutual Bank to new audiences, including young people like Sheridan on TikTok.” Sheridan made the switch to league from football, having previously captained the Young Matildas to the 2022 Under 20s women’s World Cup in Costa Rica after representing the Western Sydney Wanderers in the A League in 2021-22. The Newcastle Knights secured Sheridan this season and she has delivered, scoring five tries from seven games in the National Rugby League Women’s (NRLW) competition. The team is keen to defend their 2022 NRLW premiership in the weeks ahead and Sheridan is a vital part of that plan. Sheridan said she is proud to be partnering with a bank that has been helping people thrive for 135 years. “The community spirit of the Hunter is unmatched. I love how the people get behind the Newcastle Knights and how organisations like The Mutual Bank back our community,” she said. “They have been around since 1888 and it’s so great to see that they have a solid record of putting people first.” The Mutual Bank is headquartered in East Maitland with a presence in Maitland, Newcastle, Lake Macquarie, Port Stephens and Dungog local government areas.