Oatley is a tremendous spot in southern Sydney’s Georges River Council, just across the famous rail bridge from Como in the Sutherland Shire. It’s a leafy area on the water and a community credit union was begun there in the home of Kevin McGrath in 1963.
On May 23, 1973, the St George Pictorial newspaper published a feature on Oatley Credit Union to mark their 10th anniversary. At the time they were doing very well, they had just renovated their office which was purchased 12 months before and they were overjoyed at having recently welcomed their 500th member.
The article included an interview with Chairman Harry Hollis, who credited their recent success with the employment of their first full-time manager, Ray Gillis, only one year before.
“The office hours of the credit union have, since [Ray’s] appointment, been extended to include Monday through to Saturday morning.
“A major thrust to our growth has come from our participation in the recently commenced New South Wales Credit Union League’s development programme which gives us the backing of 300 credit unions in this state in our efforts to provide more for residents in this area”, said Mr Hollis.
The article also provided an extensive explainer of their budget savings account. How this worked was that a form was filled in noting when regular occurring bills and expenses fell, e.g., loan repayments, council rates, utility bills etc.
The article notes, “When each bill falls due, it is simply a matter of presenting the account at the credit union office and a cheque will be drawn for the amount and posted away. As with all other services, no fee is charged by the credit union for this type of account, and interest of 5% p.a. is still paid on minimum monthly balances”.
In 1979, in order to better represent its broader bond, the credit union became Georges River Credit Union. In the 1980s it accepted the engagements of Victa Employees Credit Union and Earlwood Credit Union before itself merging in 1992 with Metropolitan Credit Union.
