The Treasurer's Guide to Banking and EFTPOS

For many years, the heart of a small club's finances has been the coin tin. It is a simple system, but it creates a weekly chore for the treasurer. There is the counting of coins, the keeping of a float, and the inevitable drive to the bank branch. We also don't want to be the target of petty thieves.

Modern technology can remove these burdens, allowing you to spend more time on the green and less time counting.

The transition to digital payments is not as daunting as it may seem. Twin Rivers Croquet Club has an EFTPOS machine, and the treasurer running it is well into his eighties and manages it with no fuss.

This guide is general information, not financial advice. All figures are as at 22 September 2026. Each bank and product name below links to its own page, so you can check the latest figures.

Understanding Card Machine Costs

When looking for a card reader, the costs are divided into two parts: the device and the transaction fee. The device may be a one-off purchase or a monthly rental. The transaction fee is a small percentage taken from every sale.

To see how this works in practice, imagine your club takes $1,000 in green fees in a single month. If your provider charges a flat fee of 1.4%, the cost for that month is $14.

For many small clubs, a monthly rental fee is unnecessary and expensive. Below are options that avoid monthly charges.

No-Monthly-Fee Card Readers

Avoiding Costly Traps

Some machines are free to take home but charge a monthly rental that quickly outweighs the card fees. Watch for these three.

The Bendigo or Tyro Pro Lite has $0 hardware but a $19 monthly rental including GST, from day one. On $1,000 of monthly takings, that rental costs more than the card fees themselves. The larger CommBank Smart terminal is $29.50 a month. The ANZ Worldline Edge physical terminal is $19.95 a month after a three-month free trial.

Clubs on Suncorp Bank should note that their merchant service closes on 11 December 2026. New applicants go to ANZ Worldline instead. If your club has a Suncorp machine, that date is one to plan around now.

Practical Setup and Settlement

You have a choice between using a volunteer's own phone for tap-on-phone banking or purchasing a club-owned device to be kept at the clubhouse. In either case, the club must decide who holds the login details and manages the account.

The money usually reaches your bank account on the same or next business day. Settlement is often faster when the card reader and the bank account are with the same bank. From an accounting perspective, one line on a daily statement is much easier to reconcile than a bag of coins and a handwritten ledger.

The Surcharge Ban

A major change is coming on 1 October 2026. Under the Reserve Bank's new rules, surcharging on eftpos, Mastercard, and Visa (including debit, credit, and prepaid) will be banned. Amex and UnionPay have said they will follow on the same date, and PayPal from 5 October 2026.

There is no exemption for not-for-profits. If your club currently adds a card surcharge, you must stop by 1 October 2026.

Your choices are to absorb the cost or set your prices higher to cover it. Booking fees, and general service fees are not affected. Only the card surcharge itself is banned.

Managing the Club Account

Banks have accounts specifically for Clubs. Here are some with no monthly fee:

$0-Fee Club Bank Accounts

Before moving your club's banking, ask these three questions:

1. Is there a branch or deposit ATM in the club's own town/suburb? You will still receive some cash and coins.
2. Can online payments require two people to approve before they go through? Most banks can now do this, including CommBank, Westpac, NAB, ANZ, BOQ, Bendigo, Auswide, Queensland Country Bank and Great Southern Bank. It is not always switched on, so ask the bank to set it up when you open the account. At CommBank it comes with CommBiz, its business online banking, not NetBank.
3. What does the bank need to change signatories after each AGM when office-holders change?

Reserves and Term Deposits

If the club has excess funds, term deposits can provide a return. Minimum deposits for these products are generally $5,000. Rates move, so check them again before rolling over a deposit.

Westpac's Business Term Deposit offers 4.75% p.a. standard for 12 months, with a special offer plus online bonus reaching up to 5.30% p.a. for deposits between $5,000 and $2,000,000. CommBank's Business Investment Account offers up to 5.00% p.a. standard for 12 months on deposits from $5,000 to $1,999,999. Suncorp also offers term deposits, but since Suncorp Bank is being folded into ANZ during 2027, a club should re-check before committing to them for the longer term.

To protect these funds, the APRA Financial Claims Scheme guarantees deposits up to $250,000 per account-holder, per ADI (an APRA-authorised deposit-taking institution, such as a bank, building society, or credit union). An incorporated club is its own legal entity, so the $250,000 cap applies once to the club's accounts at each bank. A club holding more in reserve should spread it across two banks to keep it all covered.

Banks That Give Back

Some banks offer more than just a place to store money. Bendigo Bank's Community Bank branches return profit to their own town through a locally owned company. Wynnum Croquet Club has a strong relationship with Bendigo Bank Wynnum Manly: the club attended the Community Bank's June 2026 Impact Night and came home with funding in more than one category. You can read Wynnum's story on our news site.

Queensland Country Bank offers the Good for Good Community Grants: up to $30,000 for community groups, charities, and sporting clubs across Queensland, covering items like first aid equipment or upgrading turf, pitches, and courts. The round runs annually from July to mid-August, and the 2026-27 round closed on 16 August 2026, with results due in September or October. Put July 2027 in the diary for next year. You do not need to bank with them to apply, but you must open an account there to receive the grant.

This program has given 682 grants totalling over $3.27 million over 20 years. In 2025-26, 16 grants totalling over $220,000 were awarded, and six went to sports clubs. Winners ranged from Cairns to Beaudesert.

Other options include the CommBank Staff Foundation, which provided 180 grants of $20,000 each in its most recent round, and the ANZ Community Foundation, which offers grants up to $30,000.

The NAB Foundation Community Grants give up to $25,000, but only for getting ready for, or recovering from, natural disasters. That can fit a club whose grounds flood. The Westpac Foundation funds children's education only, so it is not a fit for croquet clubs.

Queensland's Own Banks

Which bank does your club use?

What are the good and bad things about the bank you use? Do you get fee free account and low cost EFTPOS? Have you gotten other benefits from your bank too?