Work ‘set to start on new bank’

KIM WATERS
WORK is set to start on a Barwon Heads community bank after its steering committee raised target capital of $770,000 in a month, according to a spokesperson.
Community bank chair Heather McCarthy said securing the capital was a “momentous occasion” for the Barwon Heads community.
Ms McCarthy said more than 220 investors purchased shares in the project.
“To raise $770,000 is no mean feat and it’s something we’re very proud of,” she said.
“Our shareholders must be congratulated for acting on the pledges they promised and ensuring we reached our minimum target, which will enable us to begin the process of construction on our Hitchcock Ave site.”
Ms McCarthy encouraged residents who pledged support to secure a slice of the share allocation.
“It’s not too late. There are still a further 200,000 shares available for purchase and anyone interested needs to act now as the prospectus will close soon.
“People that haven’t previously pledged can also buy shares and we’ve seen a number of residents doing this.”
Ms McCarthy said the community bank model had a bumper financial year in the region, with growth of 18 per cent business on 2009/2010.
“Recent figures also show $61 million dollars has been donated to local community projects through the community bank branches around Australia for more than 33,000 individual projects,” she said.