The Credit Union Difference

There are tons of reasons to love your credit union!  Credit unions are a really unique business, and by belonging to a CU, you’re a part of something pretty cool.  Credit unions are member-owned financial cooperatives.  This means that as a member of the credit union, you’re also an owner.  You get a say in how we do things here!  Your credit union is run by a volunteer board of directors that is elected by the membership (that’s you!) in a democratic process – each member has one vote.  Our board members are also members of the credit union, so they have a unique interest in seeing the credit union succeed and grow.  They are also members of our local community, so they understand what it is like to live, work, and transact business in northeast Wisconsin. 

Credit unions are also not-for-profit.  Money that we make is returned to the membership in the form of higher deposit rates, lower loan rates, and lower fees.  So all that means is rather than pad the pockets of a handful of stakeholders, we pay our dividends to you, and pad YOUR pockets.  During the recession of 2008, credit unions as a group fared much better than the bigger banks, because credit unions had been doing business responsibly all along. 

You may have also heard it said that credit unions are "for people, not profits”.  “People helping people” is the credit union philosophy.  It is the principle on which all credit unions were founded, and it is how credit unions still do business today.  This is brought to life when we lend a member $500 to fill their propane tank for the winter, or when we help a member devise a plan to pay off medical debt from an illness.  On a broader level, we live this philosophy by offering financial education to our members and communities, participating in charity events, and sponsoring community events, in addition to serving the needs of our members.

       

To learn more about the credit union difference, visit www.asmarterchoice.org or the Wisconsin Credit Union Scorecard.