Heritage Bank
Heritage Bank Limited is Australia's largest mutual bank. Its head office is located in Toowoomba, Queensland.
The bank has 60 branches in southern Queensland and New South Wales and sells home loans via a network of mortgage brokers in every state and territory in Australia. The bank's customer contact centre is also based in Toowoomba, Queensland and operates 24 hours a day, 7 days a week. In 2019 it was named Bank of the Year in the Roy Morgan Customer Satisfaction Awards for 2018.
Heritage Bank Limited is a mutual bank which is owned by its members, not by shareholders. Heritage is also a member of the Customer Owned Banking Association
History
The Toowoomba Permanent Building Society was formed in 1875 and in 1893 recorded a record profit. In 1897 Darling Downs Building Society launched and by 1914 had become the largest building society in Queensland. Over the next 20 years, the two building societies continued to grow and alternated as the largest building society in Queensland.In 1934 Toowoomba Permanent Building Society moved its head office from Russell Street to a site at the corner of Russell and Neil Streets, Toowoomba where it remained for 43 years. Darling Downs Building Society's head office was located nearby in Margaret Street, Toowoomba before moving to Ruthven Street, Toowoomba in 1971.
In 1981 Toowoomba Permanent Building Society and Darling Downs Building Society merged to form Heritage Building Society, and in 1983 the head office moved to the newly constructed Heritage Plaza at 400 Ruthven Street, Toowoomba where it still sits today. Assets of Heritage Building Society passed the $1 billion mark in 1995, $4 billion mark in 2003, $7 billion mark in 2009, and exceeded the $10 billion mark in 2019.
The first community branch for Heritage opened in Crows Nest, Queensland in 1999, with a further six branches opening over the coming years.
In 2011 the organisation changed its name to Heritage Bank.
In 2018 it was announced that Heritage would expand its branch operations outside of Queensland for the first time, and in October 2019 the first branch opened in Castle Hill, New South Wales. As a part of this expansion, the Heritage Bank logo was also updated to remove the stylised "gates" that were a part of the original logo.
Headquarters
Heritage Bank is currently Headquartered in Heritage Plaza Tower, located at 400 Ruthven St, Toowoomba, Queensland, Australia. Heritage Plaza Tower, built in 1983, was the first high-rise office building in Toowoomba.The building houses Heritage Bank's various departments and Contact Centre and has a branch on the ground floor. Heritage Plaza Tower is the workplace for approximately 400 Heritage staff.
Products and services
Heritage provides Retail, Business and Agribusiness Banking Services as well as Superannuation, General and Commercial Insurance products and Financial Planning.Heritage notes
In October 2009, Heritage was the first mutual Authorised Deposit-taking Institution to initiate an ASX listed debt transaction. Heritage raised $50 million from the issue of 500,000 subordinated, unsecured debt securities. The demand for Heritage notes was extremely strong and the transaction was three times oversubscribed.Heritage Online (HOL)
Heritage Bank offers online banking services through Heritage Online. Heritage Online allows customers to transfer funds, manage accounts, access assets and liabilities and also manage savings. Heritage Online is also offered with a mobile app available for iOS and Android.Heritage Mobile App
The Heritage Mobile App offers a range of features to customers to assist in keeping on top of their finances while on the go. The mobile app also allows members to initiate transfers through the New Payments Platform to a PayiD or Bank Account.Contact Centre
Heritage's Contact Centre is based in Toowoomba, Queensland and in 2018 commenced operating 24 hours a day, 7 days a week.Cards and Payments Innovation
Digital wallet
Heritage Bank offers several digital wallet options including; Samsung Pay, Garmin Pay, Fitbit Pay & Google Pay.Hova
In 2017, Heritage was the first financial institution in Australia to launch a payments band for customers. The HOVA is a wrist band with an embedded chip that provides the same functionality as a normal plastic credit or debit card. It allows users to leave their wallet or phone at home and make a purchase simply by “hovering” the device over a contactless payment terminal. The HOVA payment bands were only available for a limited time. In October 2019, the HOVA payment bands were reintroduced with the addition of a pink band along with the original black.Power suit
Heritage Bank partnered with M.J. Bale and Visa in 2014 to create a suit with a contactless payment chip and antenna fused into the sleeve, giving men the ability to pay for anything by waving their sleeve over a contactless payment terminal. The contactless payment chip features Visa PayWave technology and is tied to an account issued by Heritage Bank. One of these suits was sold in the M.J. Bale, Westfield Sydney store, and another was sold online via auction with the proceeds going to the charity 4 ASD Kids.Pre-Paid Cards
Heritage is the largest issuer of pre-paid cards in Australia, particularly travel cards, working with a number of companies that sell pre-paid cards. Heritage currently supports brands including Australia Post, Optus, Qantas, Travelex, and MasterCard's multi-currency CashPassport.Heritage Bank Charitable Foundation
In June 2019 Heritage Bank launched a registered charity dubbed the Heritage Bank Charitable Foundation with an initial $2 million contribution. The Foundation provides funding grants to not-for profit groups for projects aimed at building and improving community wellbeing and life outcomes for people.Sponsorships and community support
Heritage sponsors a number of organisations and events in Queensland, including the Queensland Performing Arts Centre, Ekka, Heritage Bank Toowoomba Royal Show, Heritage Bank Sunshine Coast Show, Toowoomba Carnival of Flowers, Ipswich Festival, Triathlon Pink, and Tennis Queensland.Community branches
Heritage currently has seven community branches located in Highfields, Crows Nest, Millmerran, Karalee, Forest Lake, Nanango and Palmwoods.The community banking model is based on the formation of a community-based company made up of a range of investors from the immediate area where a branch is to be established. Heritage then partners with this company to form a joint venture. Joint venture company directors act in a voluntary capacity. Both Heritage and the company contribute to the set-up costs and share ongoing expenses.
Profits are shared and the company can distribute its share of profits back into the community to support charities, sporting clubs and other local organisations through grant funding.