US Bank Transfer Day campaign spreads to New Zealand on Guy Fawkes Day; NZ Association of Credit Unions eyes shift of customers from big 4 banks
A US campaign to transfer accounts out of banks into community owned financial institutions today has spread from social networks in America to New Zealand.
New Zealand Association of Credit Union Chief Executive Henry Lynch told Interest.co.nz credit unions had begun receiving enquiries about shifting accounts through this week as the campaign spread out of the United States.
‘Bank Transfer Day’ is part of the broader Occupy Wall Street movement sweeping America and much of the developed world.
“The dissatisfaction being expressed in the US in particular, with the perceived unfairness of their banking system, is definitely giving the Bank Transfer Day campaign traction,” said Lynch. The NZACU is the trade association for 21 member credit unions throughout the country.
The bank transfer movement was started by a Californian businesswoman, Kristen Christian, who was disgruntled with the way her bank had treated her, and decided to shift her funds ‘to the local level where they will have a more positive impact on the community’. See more here at Reuters.
More than 70,000 consumers in the US have already indicated via Facebook that they intend to follow suit and shift their money to credit unions. Here is the Facebook page November 5th used as the base for the campaign.
“Some credit unions in the US have seen more than a 300% increase in new members, and it appears to be continuing. People are becoming more aware of the cooperative values of credit unions and like the fact that all members are treated equally,” said Lynch.
Credit Unions are owned by their members and receive benefits from that ownership in the form of lower borrowing rates and higher deposit rates.
“It’s one member, one vote, regardless of your level of savings with that credit union,” continues Mr Lynch.
In the last 12 months to 30 September 2011, the 21 NZACU member credit unions have grown their membership by 3.5%, their assets by 5.3% and deposits by 6.7%.
6 Comments
Here we go:
http://www.nzacu.org.nz/press-centre/key-statistics-and-facts
let's all abandon the greedy banks and see the profits returned to our communities instead of transfered offshore. The govt and the RBNZ are not going to like this trend!
Dear Anon annoy anono,
Credit Unions are member owned cooperatives under the FSCU Act and offer most servcies that Banks offer, also offering pretty much the same as Cooperative Bank as well.
The key restrictions for credit unions are - maximum deposit by an individual is $250k and only allowed to offer personal banking. To me both of these are good controls, as liquidity concentration risk is reduced for one and it ensures they stick to what they are good at, instead of "dabbling" in commercial stuff.
These controls are to be removed:
Credit Union, says it has seen a big rise in new customers. I have read that it has had a 30% increase state-wide from September to October and more than 23,000 new accounts over the last two months. Some credit unions have even doubled the number of new accounts.The campaign was evidently successful. A lot of interest has been paid to “Bank Transfer Day” on November 5, the internet grassroots campaign to get individuals to change from retail banking to a credit union or neighborhood bank. Reports from the weekend indicate thousands participated.This seem to imply that consumers are now extra practical in choosing the right bank for them.I've read it here: Early Bank Transfer Day numbers show success
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