Commonwealth Bank
The first branch (the Melbourne branch) of the bank opened on July 15, 1912. In an agreement with Australia Post that exists to this day, the bank also traded through post office agencies.
In 1920, the bank assumed the responsibility for the issue of Australian bank notes from the Department of Treasury, the beginning of its acquisiton of central bank powers.
In 1958 and 1959, there was a controversy concerning the dual function of the bank as the central bank on the one hand and a general bank on the other. As a result of this, the bank was split, giving the reserve bank function to the Reserve Bank of Australia and the general bank function to the Commonwealth Banking Corporation.
The bank actively supported the introduction of decimal currency in the years leading up to 1966 and like most banks, it gradually converted its paper records onto a new computer-based system. The bank created the first credit card in Australia in 1974 when it established Bankcard. In later years the bank began offering Mastercards (1984) and Visa (1993) cards as well.
History
Foundation and Early History (1911-1941)
The Commonwealth Bank of Australia was founded by an Australian Act of Parliament in 1911 called Commonwealth Bank Act. Bank Nationalisation was the policy of the Andrew Fisher Labor Government. In a rare move for the time, the bank was to have both savings and general bank business. The bank was also the first bank in Australia to receive a Federal Government guarantee. The bank's first Governor was Sir Denison Miller.Central Bank (1941-1960)
The Commonwealth Bank received almost all central bank powers in emergency legislation passed during World War II and at the end of the war it used this powers to begin a dramatic expansion of the economy. This was also the aim of the Government at the time, which colossallly expanded immigration programmes. To respond to this, the bank established a Migrant Information Service. Predictably, the bank also expanded during this period, in just five years hundreds of branches were opened throughout the nation.Diversification (1960-1983)
A new Commonwealth Development Bank was established in 1960 and during the 1970s the bank diversified its business into areas like insurance and travel. It established a finance company, the Commonwealth Bank Finance Corporation in 1974. The bank also became more heavily involoved in foreign currency trading and international banking in general.Deregulation (1983-1990)
Privatisation and the Colonial (1990-2001)
External Links