12 September 2003 12:00am

More than sixty thousand of Tasmania's public servants and their families will be swapping the benefits of saving and borrowing from a mutual credit union such as, in theory, more favourable interest rates and a different approach to credit criteria compared with banks for a one off handout of shares with a nominal value of $300 when Connect Group launches onto the list of the Australian Stock Exchange later this year.

Connect is a new holding company structure for Connect Credit Union, an amalgamation of more than half a dozen Tasmanian credit unions over the years, but whose...