Bendigo Bank

Bendigo Bank (ASX: BEN) is an Australian financial institution, operating primarily in retail banking. The company merged with Adelaide Bank in November 2007, with shareholders voting in March 2008 to change the merged company's name to Bendigo and Adelaide Bank Limited.

Before the merger, Bendigo Bank delivered its products and services through almost 900 outlets Australia-wide, including more than 160 company owned branches, 220 community owned Community Bank branches of Bendigo Bank, 100 agencies and 400 Elders outlets. The bank's branches are primarily in Victoria and Queensland. The merged bank now has over 400 branches, including 25 that came with the merger with Adelaide Bank. The bank's national headquarters remain in the city of Bendigo, and it has regional headquarters in Melbourne Docklands, Ipswich, Queensland and Adelaide, South Australia.

Community Bank is an innovative franchise program in which the local community owns and operates a Bendigo Bank branch (which is separately incorporated) and Bendigo Bank provides all the banking infrastructure and support. The community company and Bendigo Bank share all branch revenue with whatever is left over, after the company pays its branch running costs, remaining as profit. The program was a response to the massive closure of bank branches in rural areas. Bendigo Bank has since extended the program to areas that have bank service.