KEY POINTS:
SYDNEY - Western Australia-based bank BankWest is to open 160 branches on Australia's east coast in what it describes as a major challenge to the Big Four banks.
BankWest, part of HBOS, says the rollout will be the largest ever conducted in Australia from scratch.
It says the rollout will create 3000 jobs in the east and allow it to reach a potential 11 million new customers.
Announcing the roll-out yesterday, HBOS Australia chief executive David Willis said the bank was "in a position to move into this new phase in our growth strategy because of our success over the past four years".
"BankWest is a significant force for change in Australian banking," Willis said.
"We have challenged the status quo with a number of innovative products and services ... This initiative offers customers a real alternative to the Big Four and a better deal."
BankWest, which started in Western Australia in 1895, is a wholly owned subsidiary of HBOS, one of the world's largest financial services groups.
It describes itself as a full-service bank and has more than 860,000 customers.
BankWest retail chief executive Ian Corfield said the bank would cut charges, seeking to undercut the major banks.
"We know that customers are sick of sky-high interest rates, they're sick of big fees and they're sick of poor service, so we're going to offer something different," he told Channel Nine.
The branch expansion pours cold water on speculation that BankWest was poised to launch a takeover bid for another regional bank.
"We think we can actually attract lots and lots of customers by opening more of our own stores," Corfield told Channel 9.
"So, to be honest, it didn't make sense for us to go out and buy something.
"The Big Four ... are going to have to react to this. They're going to have to offer their customers better deals or better service if they're going to match what we're doing."
Commonwealth Bank has close to 1000 branches, and NAB has around 800.
Scottish-based HBOS converted a major shareholding in BankWest to a complete takeover in 2003.
- AAP
