Dnister Ukrainian Credit Union, one of two remaining ethnically based credit unions in the country, has announced a profit after tax of A$260,000 for the year ended June 2021, down from $337,000 in the prior year.
The profit translated to a return on assets of just 0.12 per cent, indicative of challenging markets faced by smaller ADIs in the mutual sector. This was after a write off of $173,000 in project costs, and an additional $83,000 added to the credit loss provision.
Dnister saw assets increase from $205 million to $228 million, placing the credit union in the bottom third of mutuals by size. Deposits grew 10 per cent to $196 million and the lending portfolio also increased 10 per cent to $167 million.
The report from chair David Hassett noted that their community support program in the 2021 year cost $380,000, of which $352,000 related to fees and charges absorbed through the member loyalty fee rebate program.
Hassett noted that “The Board’s intent is to ensure that Dnister maintains itself as a strong and viable provider of services to its members. This requires constantly monitoring a rapidly changing financial services industry but Dnister is committed to adapting to a changing world and strengthening itself to ensure Dnister is an organisation that addresses the needs of both current and future generations.”
Dnister, which operates branches and agencies in Victoria, South Australia, New South Wales and Western Australia, has 76 per cent of its loans in Victoria, 11 per cent in South Australia and the balance in other states. One noteworthy aspect was an increase in loans with a LVR over 80 per cent, which jumped from $294,000 to $8.443 million over the year, whilst unsecured loans, although small in value, tripled during the year in a more risky lending approach.
Dnister is one of 26 mutuals who are members of Shared Service Partners, a body set up in 2015 to take advantage of procurement discounts for a larger collective of mutuals across telecommunications, property, printing and insurances.