Regional Australia Bank and Summerland Bank will become one on 1 July 2026 following the banks’ annual general meetings on Wednesday and Thursday.
The merged entity will manage more than $5 billion of assets and operate in 49 locations across regional NSW and southern Queensland.
Both banks assure members the consolidation won’t impact branch availability, promising no closures, staff losses, or change in support options.
“[Thursday’s] vote reinforces our commitment to regional Australia by growing our ability to serve more towns and communities throughout regional NSW and into Queensland,” Regional Australia Bank CEO David Heine (pictured above, right) said.
“Resilience will be supported through shared infrastructure, broader geographic reach, and increased financial capacity, allowing us to continue delivering personalised service while adapting to changing market conditions,” Summerland Bank CEO John Williams (above, left) added.
The member votes were the final hurdle to be cleared before the merger could go ahead.
The Australian Prudential Regulation Authority (APRA) gave it the tick of approval in August, and comes after Regional Australia Bank snaffled Macquarie Credit Union in 2023.
Here’s a breakdown of what the latest merger players are each bringing to the table:
Branches
Customer
deposits
Home loans
Owner-occupier
Home loans
Investor
Regional
Australia Bank
39
$3.5 billion
$2.3 billion
$586 million
Summerland
Bank
10
$1.1 billion
$673 million
$193 million
Combined
49
$4.6 billion
$3 billion
$779 million
Source: APRA (September 2025)
While Regional Australia Bank is a far larger institution than Summerland Bank, it’s not a sure thing that the latter will be absorbed into the former.
As it stands, both brands will continue to exist post-merger, with a decision on potential consolidation to be considered after it is implemented.
This is similar to the initial operations of bigger customer-owned mergers in recent history, namely Greater Bank and Newcastle Permanent, and Heritage Bank and People’s Choice, both in March 2023.
Regional Australia Bank & Summerland to join growing list of merged customer-owned banks
In the wake of the merger, the combined entity will be one of Australia’s largest customer-owned banks, seeing it nudge out Defence Bank for ninth at current asset levels.
They currently boast combined customer deposits of $4.6 billion.
Currently, Heritage Bank and People’s Choice, which merged in 2023, lead the rankings.
Other merged mutuals Newcastle Permanent and Greater Bank, as well as Bank Australia which merged with Qudos Bank earlier this year, also feature prominently.
Meanwhile, a proposed merger between Great Southern Bank and P&N Bank could blow all other mutual banks out of the water.
Customer-owned banks
Customer deposits
Home loans (owner-occupier and investor)
Heritage and People’s Choice
$20.7 billion
$20.6 billion
Newcastle Greater Mutual Group
$19.2 billion
$18 billion
Great Southern Bank
$15.6 billion
$17.6 billion
Bank Australia
$14.5 billion
$14.2 billion
Teachers Mutual Bank
$9.4 billion
$9.4 billion
Beyond Bank
$8.6 billion
$8.8 billion
P&N Bank
$7.8 billion
$7.3 billion
IMB
$7 billion
$6.3 billion
Source: APRA (September 2025)
While Regional Australia Bank is the larger of the two banks, Summerland is the oldest, having been established in 1964 – five years earlier than Regional Australia Bank.
Summerland Bank is headquartered in Lismore and operates over the NSW Northern Rivers and South East Queensland.
Regional Australia Bank is headed from Armidale and Port Macquarie and offers branches from Wagga Wagga to Tenterfield.
Speaking to the Savings Tip Jar Podcast back in April, Regional Australia Bank general manager customer Ben Luck explained the reason for the merger back when it was still in the due diligence stage.
“It allows the ability for two similar mutuals to come together to expand its services and community and offerings to regional Australians or to all Australians, depending where you’re based,” he said.
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