QT Mutual will rebrand as RACQ Bank from October as part of a wide-ranging campaign to stem its declining membership in Queensland.Steve Targett, chief executive of the bank, told Banking Day that the name change would complement a marketing campaign aimed at the Royal Automobile Club of Queensland's 1.6 million members."We're looking at launching the new brand in October," Targett said."QT Mutual Bank will be completely rebranded as RACQ Bank."QT Mutual became a member of the RACQ Group last year after its members approved a merger deal that injected fresh capital in the business.The cash is now being deployed to replace QT's outdated Fiserv banking systems with new digital and online transaction platforms."We didn't have modern banking platforms so the online experience of members has been lacking," he said."The new internet system will expand our online functionality including the launch of a phone banking app."As with most other former credit unions, QT Mutual has been losing members in the last decade as its customer base has aged.Despite the member runoff, the latest APRA data shows that QT grew its mortgage book by 10.8 per cent to A$1.29 billion over the 12 months to April 2017.This was in line with the growth rates of other customer-owned banks measured by APRA.Targett said the RACQ's distribution network across Queensland would open opportunities to expand the bank's physical presence in the state.QT Mutual currently has 14 branches but that would more than triple when banking capability was added to RACQ's 33 outlets, he said.The merger will give the bank an over-the-counter presence in important regional markets such as Gladstone, Mackay and Rockhampton."Those places are a bubble for us - where we have members but no physical presence," Targett said."That's going to be a significant benefit for new and existing members of the bank."When the integration of QTMB and RACQ is completed, the bank will have a network of at least 40 branches, putting it on a competitive footing with Queensland's largest regional players - BOQ (with 117 branches), Suncorp Bank (104) and Heritage Bank (61).Targett said the bank would also expand its mobile lending force to service members in rural and remote parts of the state.Targett said QTMB had been seeking a merger partner since 2014 and first entered strategic talks with RACQ in July of that year."Banking is scale business and the merger is about regrowing the membership base," he said."We don't have enough members."While Targett would not rule out an interstate expansion in the future he said the immediate focus was on marketing the bank to the automobile club's subscribers and raising its profile in Australia's "most fragmented banking market"."We've got to make sure that our banking services are accessible to RACQ members, so I think initially our focus is within Queensland," he said."There's only so many things we can do, right now."The expansion is set to boost ranks of the bank's full time workforce of 200 people."We're looking to hire more staff - it could be by around thirty to forty