Maitland Mutual Building Society plans to rename itself as "The Mutual Bank", with the ADI to change its name from the beginning of March 2019.
Chair Trevor Robinson, shared news of the renaming in an advisory to members at its website.
"Building society is no longer a commonly used or widely understood term," he explained.
"Established in 1888 as the Maitland Permanent Building Investment and Loan Society Limited and Savings Bank, the change reflects a transition to The Mutual's original status as a bank," Robinson said.
Maitland Mutual foreshadowed this shift was likely in its 2018 annual report.
With assets of A$672 million and member equity of $44 million, The Mutual will be a minnow among banks in Australia, and overshadowed on its local turf by two Newcastle-based mutual ADIs, Greater Bank and Newcastle Permanent Building Society, the latter now the last of its kind.