When the board of Credit Union Australia decided it was time to change the customer-owned bank’s name to Great Southern Bank in 2021, the research finding that had the biggest influence on the decision was that nearly half of Australians had no idea what a credit union was. It was primarily young people who were ignorant of credit unions. CUA’s consumer research found that more than 70 per cent of millennials did not know what a credit union was. CUA changed its name to Great Southern Bank in June 2021. Prior to the rebrand, the average age of customers was 50.  In the six months to December last year, Great Southern attracted 18,945 new customers, with an average age of 27. Since the rebrand the average age of customers has come down to 48. Great Southern chief executive Paul Lewis said the bank was attracting more first home buyers and has a large cohort of customers under 18 thanks to the introduction of its Youth eSaver account, which pays up to 5.1 per cent. Great Southern made a profit of A$31.6 million in the six months to December, compared with $15.7 million in the previous corresponding period. Assets rose 4.8 per cent to $17.9 billion and retail deposits rose 2.8 per cent to $12.1 billion.