From a small group of NSW Police Officers with “a handwritten ledger and money in a tin” to the 75,000-member strong organisation with more than $2.5 billion in assets, a lot has changed in Police Bank’s 60-year history.
Started as Police Credit Union in 1964, it originally operated out of the Clarence Street police station in the Sydney CBD before eventually moving into its own premises in Pitt Street in the 1980s. In 1984, a branch was opened at the Goulburn Police Academy.
1999 marked another major milestone: that was the year that the Bank’s relationship with NSW Police Legacy was formalised. Driven by long-time director Lloyd Taylor, the bank came onboard as one of our two Foundation Partners, along with Police Association of NSW (with us since our inception in 1987). And in 2012, the members passed a resolution to become Police Bank.
Talking with current CEO Greg McKenna, it’s clear that while a lot has changed over the years, the focus remains very much on supporting the members who benefit from their services. “We’re still owned by our members. That ethos about supporting police and their families is still our raison d'être”.
Greg started as a Board Member in 2012, and became CEO in 2020 – the week most of us were locking down for the first time. With so many people facing financial uncertainty, and reaching out for help in that tumultuous time, it really brought home to him the fact that Police Bank have always been, and will always be, a “human to human organisation”.
Despite the word bank right there in the name, the money they make doesn’t go to shareholders. It goes to charities. It goes to supporting the Police Family, and for that we remain eternally grateful.
A proud 60-year history, and a proud 25-year history of supporting NSW Police Legacy. The future is looking bright indeed.
