has multiple issues . please help improve it or discuss these issues on the talk page . learn how and when to remove these template messages this article needs additional citations for verification . please help improve this article by adding citations to reliable sources . unsourced material may be challenged and removed . march 2008 learn how and when to remove this template message this article relies too much on references to primary sources . please improve this by adding secondary or tertiary sources . may 2015 learn how and when to remove this template message a major contributor to this article appears to have a close connection with its subject . it may require cleanup to comply with wikipedia s content policies particularly neutral point of view . please discuss further on the talk page . may 2015 learn how and when to remove this template message learn how and when to remove this template message community first credit union type private industry banking financial services predecessor sydney water board credit union elcom credit union and many others founded 1959 as sydney water board officers credit union headquarters auburn sydney new south wales australia number of locations 10 branches 3 000 atms area served australia key people john tancevski ceo products finance and insurance consumer banking corporate banking mortgages credit cards number of employees 122 2015 slogan a brighter future website www.communityfirst.com.au community first credit union is an australian community based credit union established in sydney in 1959 as sydney water board officers credit union with branches in sydney and the central coast region . the credit union has formerly operated under the names or merged with elcom credit union swb family credit union swb community credit union the lakes power station employees credit union dana employees credit union croatian community credit union and hibernian credit union . contents 1 history 1.1 sydney water board credit union 1.2 swb family credit union 1.3 swb community credit union 1.4 community first credit union 1.5 elcom credit union merger 1.6 northern beaches credit union merger 2 sponsorship 3 references 4 external links history edit sydney water board credit union edit in 1959 the sydney water board officers credit union was founded . at the formation meeting on 5 august 1959 63 employees became the first members of sydney water board credit union co op . membership was originally restricted to permanent employees in the metropolitan water sewerage & drainage board s predecessor of sydney water head office . loans were limited to 300 600 at the 1966 conversion rate . by the end of its first financial year the credit union had 331 members and 15 565 31 130 in assets . 1 in 1961 the loan limit was raised to 750 1 500 . by the end of the 61 62 financial year there were 1 052 members with assets of 127 429 254 858 . in 1964 the credit union became automated with the purchase of its first ncr national accounting machine to maintain members accounts . in 1967 the board approved a change of name to the sydney water board employees credit union . 1968 saw the credit union purchase a new four storey head office co operation house at 125 bathurst st sydney for the sum of 250 000 . in 1972 full computerisation of the member accounts and transactions were completed . in 1973 through to 1976 ongoing expansion during this period lead to offices being opened in wollongong miranda penrith and liverpool . membership was opened beyond the original base of water board employees to include the board s contractors and manufacturers . the credit union merged with the employee credit unions of taa trans australia airlines glass containers and sterlec . swb family credit union edit the taa connection also provided the credit union s first non water board and female director margaret slater . in 1974 in line with the changing membership profile the name of the credit union was changed to swb family credit union ltd. in 1978 the credit union became the 12th largest in australia with 16 420 members and assets of 14 039 267 . in 1981 swb family credit union merged with martin wells credit union . in 1981 the credit union moved into most of penrith as a credit union for all residents not just employees with payroll deductions . this was followed in 1983 by a similar expansion in liverpool and in 1984 to the shire of hornsby . new offices were also opened in campbelltown north ryde and dee why . swb community credit union edit the transformation from a work based credit union to a more community based one prompted another name change to s.w.b. community credit union ltd. in 1983 the rediteller atm network was launched and all members were issued with redicards for use in some 500 atms nationwide . in 1984 the credit union visa card gave members debit card access to their funds almost anywhere in the world . at this time there was also a merger with amoco employees credit union . membership grew to 21 941 with deposits of 28 585 671 and total assets of 31 756 576 . in 1986 the credit union merged with wool broker and trustees staff credit union . in 1989 the credit union had 31 355 members with total assets of 75 615 583 . it granted loans worth 35 530 000 in that year . the bathurst street building was sold and head office was relocated to auburn . 2 in 1990 there was another local merger this time with muniff credit union . community first credit union edit in 1993 members resolved to change the name of the credit union from swb community credit union ltd to community first credit union . membership eligibility was expanded to include everybody in the greater sydney area . by 1999 membership exceeded 57 000 with deposits of 210 million and loans worth 199 million and another merger this time with manchester unity credit union ltd. in 2000 there was a merger with grand united credit union . in 2001 an internet banking facility was introduced in september giving members 24 7 access to their accounts . assets exceeded 300 million for the first time . in 2002 community first credit union launched an online brand easy street financial services providing members nationwide with a high interest online savings account . the credit union also became sponsors of the sheppard centre providing support for deaf children and their families . in 2006 community first credit union merged with dana employees credit union . a brand make over also occurs with new logo and corporate colours . on 12 may 2006 the chief executive officer paul johnson together with john tancevski the chief executive officer of community first credit union announced the intention for the two organisations to merge . its head office is located at auburn . the merger subject to australian prudential regulation authority approvals will be voted on at the annual general meetings of both credit unions in october with the merge to take effect on 1 november 2006 . the merged entity would be called community first credit union having its head office at auburn and a regional office at gorokan . in 2008 community first credit union merged with the croatian community credit union and hibernian credit union adding 2 000 new members . elcom credit union merger edit elcom credit union was a community based credit union in australia that was formed in 1966 at newvale colleries doyalson as newstan colliery employees credit union . the name was changed to elcom credit union following the acquisition on newvale colleries by elcom colleries during the 1970s . elcom credit union operated from its head office at elcom colleries at doyalson . until 1983 the only way for members to access their funds was by cheque delivered by a courier . at this stage elcom had 3125 members nearly 6 000 000 in assets . in 1983 a special general meeting was held where it was decided that membership would be open to the community at large thus becoming a community based credit union rather than an industrial credit union . subsequently five branches were opened at toukley toronto morisset swansea and wyong . in may 1987 elcom held a special general meeting where it was decided that the credit union be merged with the lakes power station employees credit union . prior to the merge elcom had 6 492 members and more than 15 000 000 in assets . the merge resulted in new branches at eraring power station vales point power station gorokan and the entrance as well as agencies at liddell state mine and belmont sportsmans club and a larger branch presence at munmorah power station . earlier in the year elcom had moved its head office from doyalson to morisset following changes at munmorah power station . following the merger it was relocated to the lakes head office at gorokan . the branch there was closed in 1998 but continued operating as head office until october 2006 . new branches were opened at erina 1991 woy woy 1993 lake haven 1994 and glendale 1996 . the agencies were closed 1988 as were the branches at the entrance 1989 and the power stations 1992 . wyong branch was moved to tuggerah in 1994 to coincide with the opening of westfield shoppingtown . as well as this elcom broadened its product range to include products such as insurance cheque books atm access and travellers cheques . first choice travel was a venture by elcom credit union with holiday coast credit union that began in december 1999 with the opening of garden city now westfield kotara branch and has since been incorporated into several branches as well as at port macquarie . elcom credit union s two third share of first choice travel was sold in december 2005 to hunter travel group but continues to be associated with the credit union . during march 2005 elcom credit union adopted a new logo and uniform with new branch signage also being put into place . it officially ceased trading as a deposit taking institution on 31 october 2006 when it merged with community first credit union . 3 at the time of merging elcom had seven branches 50 staff 22 000 members and assets of 143 000 000 . paul johnson has been chief executive officer since 2003 . northern beaches credit union merger edit on december 1 2015 the northern beaches credit union merged with community first credit union . sponsorship edit in 2009 in association with cricketer glenn mcgrath and the mcgrath foundation the mcgrath pink visa credit card was launched . half the card s annual fee of 20 is donated to the mcgrath foundation which supports women with breast cancer 4 by providing nurses . 5 currently membership exceeds 65 000 with assets reaching 738 million . 6 references edit community first credit union mycu history . swb credit union building for sale bathurst motel . 1988 community first credit union acquires elcom credit union ltd thomson financial mergers & acquisitions . 2 nov. 2006 community first cuts interest on card rate to 9.5 per cent news limited . 2012 credit cards that save the world ninemsn . 2010 community first credit union annual report p2 community first credit union . 2014 external links edit community first credit union retrieved from https en.wikipedia.org w index.php title community first credit union & oldid 735821967 categories companies established in 1959credit unions of australiahidden categories articles needing additional references from march 2008all articles needing additional referencesarticles lacking reliable references from may 2015all articles lacking reliable referenceswikipedia articles with possible conflicts of interest from may 2015use dmy dates from november 2011use australian english from november 2011all wikipedia articles written in australian english navigation menu personal tools not logged intalkcontributionscreate