The coronavirus pandemic continues to throw a spanner in the works for many small businesses throughout Australia.
Between May and June 2021, a higher proportion of businesses reported decreased revenue (24%) than increased (13%), with some businesses commenting their revenue had been impacted by lockdowns, according to the ABS. On a positive note, however, we have seen some optimism with nearly a quarter of businesses (23%) expecting to increase staff numbers over the next three months.
Whether your small business is still facing challenges or is looking towards recovery and future growth, the value you’re getting from your bank could play an important role, across a variety of products and services.
This is why, in addition to our Star Ratings for individual business products, Canstar names a winner of the Bank of the Year – Small Business Award every year. This Award assesses financial institutions based on the following three pillars:
The award recognises the bank found to offer the best cumulative performance across the metrics assessed.
For this year’s Small Business Award, Canstar Research assessed the business product offerings of nine eligible institutions from our database, including 22 business savings and transaction accounts, 36 business loans, and 26 business credit cards.
To be eligible for consideration, a financial institution must have at least two product offerings of business loans, business credit cards and/or business savings/transaction accounts and also offer branch access in a majority of states and territories. The financial institutions included in this year’s Small Business Award were assessed using a methodology that considered:
The financial institution with the highest overall score across these three categories was recognised with the Bank of the Year – Small Business.
St.George Group including St.George Bank, Bank of Melbourne and BankSA has won this year’s Bank of the Year – Small Business Award. The three brands provide consumers with a very similar product and service offering, but operate in separate states and territories – St.George primarily services customers in New South Wales and Queensland, Bank of Melbourne operates in Victoria, and BankSA caters to consumers in South Australia and the Northern Territory.
Canstar Research said St.George Group offers extremely competitive lending products, along with market-leading business credit cards and business overdraft accounts. They provide a wide range of business banking services with strong disaster relief and support, including well-developed education programs and tools for small business owners. The St.George Group received the highest interest rate satisfaction score, and the second highest customer service satisfaction score for providers assessed.
St George Bank also recently took out a number of awards for business loans.
This year the majority of providers received higher average customer satisfaction scores in Canstar’s survey than previous years. Value for money was the biggest influence on customers’ overall satisfaction and problem resolution was more of an influential factor than fees and charges.
For more information on how the results of Canstar’s 2021 Small Business Award were calculated, you can read the methodology.
Cover image source: loreanto/Shutterstock.com
This article was reviewed by our Sub Editor Jacqueline Belesky before it was updated, as part of our fact-checking process.
This advice is general and has not taken into account your objectives, financial situation, or needs. It is not personal advice. Consider whether this advice is right for you, having regard to your own objectives, financial situation and needs. You may need financial advice from a suitably qualified adviser. For more information, read Canstar’s Financial Services and Credit Guide (FSCG) and our detailed disclosure. Canstar may receive a fee for referring you to a product provider – for further information, see how we get paid. Payment of fees for ads does not influence our Star Ratings or Awards.
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The Award results referred to in this article were published in July, 2021. View the Small Business Award Methodology and Results for more information. The results do not include all providers and may not compare all features relevant to you. They do not constitute a suggestion or recommendation about any particular financial or credit product, and Canstar is not providing a recommendation for your individual or business circumstances. Products referred to this article are not intended to be used for personal, domestic or household purposes.
Star Ratings and Awards are only one factor to take into account when considering products. Current rates and fees may be different to what was rated. Costs, features and other product information should be confirmed with the relevant product provider. If you decide to apply for a financial product, you will deal directly with the provider, not with Canstar.
Any advice provided on this website is general and has not taken into account your objectives, financial situation or needs. Consider whether this advice is right for you. Consider the Product Disclosure Statement and Target Market Determination before making a purchase decision. Canstar provides an information service. It is not a credit provider, and in giving you information about credit products Canstar is not making any suggestion or recommendation to you about a particular credit product. Research provided by Canstar Research AFSL and Australian Credit Licence No. 437917. You must not reproduce, transmit, disseminate, sell, or publish information on this website without prior written permission from Canstar.