Who owns my bank?
Your bank could be owned by another, larger bank. Check who owns your bank here, and what impact this has on your money.
Key takeaways
- Many smaller banks, credit unions and building societies are actually owned by bigger banks - particularly the Big Four.
- If you're with a smaller bank, it may be nice to know they've got the financial backing of a big bank.
- The owner of your bank is unlikely to impact your daily banking, but it's good to be aware of.
At a glance: Who owns my bank?
| Bank | Bank brands |
|---|---|
| Westpac | St.George, BankSA, Bank of Melbourne |
| NAB | Ubank |
| ANZ | Suncorp Bank |
| CommBank | Bankwest, Aussie (part owner), Lendi Group (part owner) |
| Bendigo and Adelaide Bank | Bendigo Bank, Adelaide Bank, Up, Rural Bank, Alliance Bank, Delphi Bank |
| Bank of Queensland | ME Bank, Virgin Money |
In depth: Who owns my bank?
The value of trust
Australians like to know who they're banking with. A 2023 Finder survey found that having a bank they 'know and trust' was the second most important feature when choosing a savings account, second only to the interest rate offered.
Source:
Finder Consumer Sentiment Tracker 2023
Does it matter if my bank is owned by another bank?
Who owns your bank won't have too much of an impact on your day-to-day transactions. However, it could impact you if you've got a large amount of cash sitting in the bank.
The Australian government's Financial Claims Scheme (FCS), which guarantees the security of your money up to $250,000 per account holder per authorised deposit-taking institution (ADI), applies per banking licence rather than per brand. Brands that operate under their parent bank's licence share one $250,000 cap, while a bank that is owned by another bank but keeps its own licence gets its own cap. Without knowing which banks own what, your savings might not be as secure as you might think.
For example, let's say you had $250,000 in a savings account with Ubank and another $250,000 in a savings account with NAB. Because ubank is owned by NAB, these two banks share the one banking licence. This means that the Australian government will only guarantee your deposit up to $250,000 with both Ubank and NAB, not the full $500,000 you have deposited.
However, because Ubank and Westpac are operating under different licences, if you had your $500,000 split between these two banks instead the full amount would be covered under the scheme. The same applies to Suncorp Bank and ANZ: ANZ owns Suncorp Bank, but Suncorp Bank still holds its own banking licence (as Norfina Limited), so deposits with each bank are covered separately.
The financial claims scheme is there to protect your cash if the bank fails. But it's important to remember that banks are incredibly regulated, and it's very unlikely that a bank would suddenly go under.
Benefits of your bank being owned by another bank
There are some benefits to your bank being owned by a larger bank too. You usually get access to the larger banks ATM network all over the world, which is convenient and can also save you money in fees.
For example, St.George, BankSA and Bank of Melbourne are all owned by Westpac. If you're a customer of one of these smaller banks, you'll also get fee-free access to Westpac's ATM network. (RAMS, once a Westpac brand, is no longer part of Westpac: RAMS home loans are now provided by Pepper Money.)
You might also be able to access the bank branches for the parent bank, if there are no local bank branches in your area.
Frequently Asked Questions
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I transferred money from my Bankwest account to my son’s Commonwealth Bank account yesterday on Boxing Day 26th December 2014 for the first time – because Commonwealth Bank owns Bankwest will the transaction take the same amount of time to be processed as it would take when transferring from one Bankwest account to another Bankwest account?
Hi Wanda,
Thanks for your question.
Since Bankwest and Commonwealth Bank are still two separate financial institutions, it could take up to 1-3 business days for the funds to appear in your son’s account.
Cheers,
Shirley
Hi,
Just would like to know who owns the following banks and what affiliation they may have with any of the bigger banks?
bankmecu
Beyond Bank
Thank you!
Jacquie
Hi Jaq,
Thanks for your question.
bankmecu is owned my mecu Ltd 2012, and Beyond Bank Australia is a trading name of Community CPS Australia.
Cheers,
Shirley
Hi, I was wondering if you could tell me who owns the following banks:
Bank of Queensland
Bendigo Bank (merged with Adelaide Bank)
Hi Heidi,
Thanks for your comment.
Bank of Queensland is owned by Bank of Queensland Limited and have recently acquired Virgin Money Australia.
Bendigo Bank is owned by ‘Bendigo and Adelaide Bank’ and operates the Rural and Delphi Bank.
Cheers,
Shirley
hanks Shirley. I really wanted to know what vested interest, if any, the big banks have in these smaller banks. I found this in a forum….interesting stuff:
HSBC Custody Nominees (Australia) Limited is listed as the number one shareholder for all of the Big Four Banks. It is a wholly owned subsidiary of HSBC Holdings Plc – trading as HSBC BANK. They own 12.09% of Bendigo & Adelaide Bank and 17.00% of Bank of Queensland. They also own 17.46% of ANZ, 13.59% of CBA, 16.86% of NAB and 14.88% of WBC. Their annual report says HSBC made a profit US$7.1 billion before tax. As of 30 June 2010 it had total assets of $2.418 trillion, of which roughly half were in Europe, a quarter in the Americas and a quarter in Asia.
JPMorgan Chase & Co (trading as the American Bank) own 7.92% of Bendigo and Adelaide Bank and 7.77% of Bank of Queensland. The American Bank thus owns: 14.51% of ANZ, 10.00% of CBA, 12.20% of NAB and 12.71% of WBC.
JPMorgan Chase had a $12 billion profit for 2009.
Citicorp Nominees Pty Limited own 2.13% of Bendigo and Adelaide Bank and 2.57% of Bank of Queensland. The own 3.84% of ANZ, 4.30% of CBA, 4.57% of NAB and 4.79% of WBC. Citigroup suffered huge losses during the global financial crisis of 2008 and was rescued in November 2008 in a massive bailout by the U.S. government. Its largest shareholders include funds from the Middle East and Singapore. In the last two financial years, their core businesses, together known as Citicorp, were profitable with $10.6 billion and $14.8 billion in net income. The company holds over 200 million customer accounts in more than 140 countries. It is a primary dealer in US Treasury securities.
National Nominees is a wholly owned subsidiary of National Australia Bank Limited.
They own 6.35% of Bendigo and Adelaide Bank and 10.87% of Bank of Queensland. They own 13.42% of ANZ, 8.81% of CBA, 11.46% of NAB and 10.47% of WBC. NAB had a net profit of $4.2 billion for 2009. …we certainly find it a little bit strange that they own less of themselves than they do of ANZ. This certainly deserves a “Please Explain!”
Hi Heidi,
Thanks for your question.
Unfortunately I can’t comment on the intention of the bigger banks as this information is not readily available for the public, but banks generally purchase shares from other banks for investment purposes.
Ultimately financial institutions try to increase their equity so they can give back to their shareholders or members.
Cheers,
Shirley