Credit Union ETHIOPIA

SPRING/SUMMER 2012
Credit Union
WORLD
ETHIOPIA
CHANGING RURAL LIVES THROUGH
AGRICULTURAL FINANCING
Poland:
Capitalizing on Collaboration
Global Economics:
Adjusting to Basel III
Spring/Summer 2012
VOL. 14 ISSUE 1
Editor
Michael Muckian
Assistant Editor
Jennifer Bernhardt
Graphic Designer
Erin Rufledt
Contributing Writers
Jennifer Ballweg
Jennifer Bernhardt
Nicole Bice
Brian Branch
Michael Muckian
Proofreader
Ellen Ferch
Circulation
Isaac Hacerola
8
For information concerning
Credit Union World, contact:
14
World Council of Credit Unions
5710 Mineral Point Road
Madison, WI 53705-4493 USA
Telephone: +1-608-395-2000
Fax: +1-608-395-2001
Email: [email protected]
www.woccu.org
PERSPECTIVES
UPDATE
4 Executive Forum
6 Manager Certification Program 14Poland
Building the Credit Union Brand
By Brian Branch
26 Global Economics
Adjusting to Basel III
Credit Union World is published by
World Council of Credit Unions. Send
submissions, requests for subscriptions
and address changes to Michael Muckian,
editor, at [email protected].
©2012 World Council of Credit Unions
Cover:
Ethiopian farmer Berihun Gebreyohannes
has benefitted financially from the
support of his rural savings and credit
cooperative society.
Photo by:
Michael Muckian
FEATURES
Branching Out
Capitalizing on Collaboration
International credit union training program Poland’s credit unions retain individuality
taps U.S. roots
By Jennifer Bernhardt
8Ethiopia
Changing Lifestyles
Ethiopia’s credit unions train members
for success
By Michael Muckian
12 Photo Essay: Ethiopia
By Michael Muckian
through unified systems
By Michael Muckian
27 Final Frame
Busia, Kenya
Fencing in the future
By Nicole Bice
Credit Union
WORLD
PEOPLE
World Council of Credit Unions
Board of Directors
5 Everyday Hero
Susan Mitchell
Mitchell, Stankovic & Associates
Manuel Rabines
Chair, Peru
National Federation of Credit Unions of Peru (FENACREP)
Grzegorz Bierecki
1st Vice Chair, Poland
National Association of Cooperative Savings & Credit Unions
(NACSCU)
WOCCU SUPPORTERS
22 Worldwide Foundation for Credit Unions
Thank you!
18
MEMBER PLATFORM
18 World Credit Union Conference
City of Solidarity
By Jennifer Ballweg
Anne Cochran
2nd Vice Chair, USA
Credit Union National Association (CUNA)
Daniel Burns
Treasurer, Canada
Credit Union Central of Canada (CUCC)
Louise Petschler
Secretary, Australia
Abacus Australian Mutuals
Manfred Dasenbrock
Director, Brazil
Confederação Interestadual das Cooperativas Ligadas ao SICREDI
(Confederação SICREDI)
Ron Hance
Director, USA
Credit Union National Association (CUNA)
Barry Jolette
Director, USA
Credit Union National Association (CUNA)
Patrick Jury
Director, USA
Credit Union National Association (CUNA)
Sylvester Kadzola
Director, Malawi
Malawi Union of Savings & Credit Cooperatives (MUSCCO)
Scott Kennedy
Director, Canada
Credit Union Central of Canada (CUCC)
Brian McCrory
Director, Ireland
Irish League of Credit Unions (ILCU)
Yvonne Ridguard
Director, Jamaica
Caribbean Confederation of Credit Unions (CCCU)
Marlene Shiels
Director, Great Britain
Association of British Credit Unions Ltd. (ABCUL)
Read Credit Union World online!
Find us at www.woccu.org/CUworld
Executive Office
Brian Branch
President & Chief Executive Officer
Perspectives Executive Forum
Building the Credit Union Brand
In 2011, we saw global economic losses stabilize and credit unions
around the world begin to climb from the worldwide recession. We began
last year with tentative hope for returning to normality and ended with an
accelerated enthusiasm for the values that credit unions embody.
Australian mutuals uplifted our spirits with their offer of a value-based
model, an alternative built on service integrity, and government officials
praised the mutual sector as the “fifth pillar” of the financial system. In
the United States, the Occupy Wall Street and Bank Transfer Day social
movements led more than 441,000 consumers to open new credit union
accounts by October. At the end of 2011, the United Nations launched the
International Year of Cooperatives.
Credit unions operate to provide service to their members rather than
maximize profits for private shareholders, and the evidence is everywhere.
The profit motive is replaced by an internal passion for member service,
which stems from the cooperative value that every member is important.
Brian Branch
President &
Chief Executive Officer
During the global financial crisis and recession, credit unions around the
world helped consumers. Most continued to lend money when other financial
institutions would not. And while commercial shareholder institutions gained
notoriety for high fees, restrictive credit and government bailouts, memberowned credit unions demonstrated their purpose to provide better consumer
service at a lower cost.
Most credit unions are locally run and tailor their services to meet the
demands of their communities. Credit unions reinvest their members’
savings back into activities that provide jobs and economic activity in the
community. Credit unions are member-focused by nature, but that does not
mean they need to be small and limited in scope. Today, credit unions create
networks to provide many points of service across many communities and to
afford the technology costs of providing competitive financial services.
We ended a year in which people and communities reached out to experience
the difference credit unions provide. We start a new year with the opportunity
to actively promote and build the credit union brand. It is an opportunity to
stand and share with the world our story, our values, our appeal.
Safe travels,
Countries featured
in this issue of
Credit Union World
CU WORLD / 4
Poland
United States
Papua New Guinea
Ethiopia
Kenya
Fiji
ccc ccc ccc ccc ccc ccc ccc ccc ccc ccc ccc ccc ccc ccc ccc c
everyday hero :: susan mitchell
C
redit union consultant Susan Mitchell is
committed to making a difference, and her
personal experiences show she has what it takes
to survive tough times. She has pursued her
goals — for that matter, her life — with a passion
for service. Mitchell’s passion has made her an
everyday hero with countless credit union
leaders worldwide.
Mitchell, a California native, has an enviable record of success.
She made her mark early in computer systems analysis and sales
primarily for the banking industry, becoming the first-ever female
sales representative in bank consultative services for an IBM
subsidiary. In 1985, she and husband Mike Stankovic started
MyDAS financial consulting services to serve the banks. But
a growing cadre of credit union clients attracted to MyDAS’s
philosophical core made a deeper impact on the entrepreneur.
“The credit union CEOs understood our commitment to making
a difference,” she said. “They shared our core values.”
Mitchell started the Strategic Holistic Executive (SHE) Group in
1990, an informal gathering for women CEOs who worked for her consulting
firm’s credit union clients. As an entrepreneur herself, Mitchell recognized the
inherent strength and unique perspective of women leaders that was needed to
support their own businesses and communities.
Fast-forward to 2008, when World Council of Credit Unions staffers met
with Mitchell, now president of Mitchell, Stankovic & Associates, to discuss
a new organization for credit union women, one with an international focus.
Mitchell had been involved with World Council for several years, seeking ways
to help further the organization’s mission. The new opportunity was a natural
connection for her.
“It’s not an issue of feminism or gender for me; it’s a human issue,” Mitchell
said. “Women are central figures in the lives of children and communities. Our
social mission is to provide opportunities and financial access to all people.”
With Mitchell’s tireless help and guidance, World Council’s Global Women’s
Leadership Network was born. For nearly four years, the network has brought
together credit union leaders from around the world to share ideas and develop
solutions to challenges facing women, especially in developing countries.
“It’s not an issue
of feminism or
gender for me;
it’s a human
issue. Our social
mission is to provide
opportunities and
financial access
to all people.”
Now three years old, the network has drawn on the strength of a memberbased organization to provide one-to-one assistance to credit unions in
developing countries and the women who run them.
“We can make a difference,” Mitchell said. “Please join us.”
LEARN MORE
For more information on the Global Women’s Leadership Network, visit www.cuwomen.org.
CU WORLD / 5
BRANCHING OUT
M
anager training
programs are not
often credited with saving
institutions from the brink
of collapse. But from the
Dominican Republic to
Fiji, some credit unions are
now flourishing where they
once floundered thanks to a
program that traces its roots
to the United States.
U.S. credit union leaders have long
benefited from high-caliber training programs,
but their developing country counterparts
have not typically enjoyed similar opportunities. Inspired by his participation in the
Western CUNA Management School (WCMS),
which is supported in part by 13 U.S. credit
union leagues, World Council of Credit Unions
Senior Vice President Mark Cifuentes took
steps to rectify the situation and bring highquality training beyond U.S. borders.
CU WORLD / 6
World Council’s Manager Certification
Program (MCP), inspired by the same principles guiding WCMS, began in 2008 and is
funded in part by WOCCU Supporter contributions. The program has since provided
financial management education to 192
current and aspiring managers in Africa, Latin
America and the Pacific Islands.
“It wasn’t an easy task to take what works
for the U.S. system and make it meaningful
for the international credit union movement,”
said WCMS Trustee Diana Dykstra, president
and CEO of the California and Nevada Credit
Union Leagues and then one of Cifuentes’
WCMS instructors who supported his idea to
adapt the program abroad. “I am thrilled Mark
had the conviction to make this happen.”
MCP participants attend week-long sessions
for two consecutive years, in which they learn
about financial analysis and management,
policies and procedures, credit administration,
savings mobilization, product development,
marketing and human resources. Participants
must pass annual examinations and apply their
skills to final projects at their credit unions.
“You can see a major difference in the
managers’ perspectives of their own credit
unions each year and how they apply that to
OPPOSITE Manager Certification Program (MCP) participants from Fiji and Papua New Guinea study for the first-year exam.
ABOVE LEFT The first group of MCP graduates receive their certificates in 2010 after completing the intensive two-year program.
ABOVE RIGHT World Council Senior Vice President Mark Cifuentes teaches MCP students in Guatemala. The program has been offered
in Latin America, Africa and the Pacific region. (Photos by Kimberly Hinrichs)
International credit union training program taps U.S. roots
by Jennifer Bernhardt
our class discussions,” Cifuentes said. “We’ve
seen credit unions make complete changes and
in some cases prepare themselves for major
problems in their countries.”
When half the Fijian Teachers Association
Credit Union (FTACU) membership withdrew
due to a new government mandate for earlier
civil servant retirement, its newly trained executives were prepared to act. They used World
Council’s PEARLS financial monitoring system
to identify a number of inactive members,
reduce delinquency and launch their first
strategic plan the following year — all skills
they acquired through the program.
But MCP’s value runs in both directions.
Bob Lestina, president and CEO of Heritage
Credit Union in Madison, Wis. (USA), volunteered at a recent training, held in conjunction with the Pacific Credit Union Technical
Congress, co-hosted annually by Credit Union
Foundation Australia, in Papua New Guinea.
He said the opportunity forced him to review
the cultural and historical perspective of how
U.S. credit unions got to where they are today.
“It enriches your own job and recharges
your batteries when you go to people eager to
learn,” said Lestina, a former World Council
employee. “I think we all have an obligation to
share our experience and knowledge with others
who may not have had the opportunity. That’s
what credit unions are all about.”
James D. Likens, president and CEO of
Western CUNA Management School and
economics professor at Pomona College, which
hosts the WCMS program, is encouraged to
hear about the program’s global impact.
“It has been a special joy to learn that Mark
Cifuentes’ experience at WCMS has become the
inspiration for a World Council program for
credit union managers,” he said. “This inspiring
development is something we at WCMS want to
encourage everywhere.”
Jennifer Bernhardt is World Council’s communications
manager. She may be reached at [email protected].
LEARN MORE
For more information on World Council’s Manager
Certification Program, visit www.woccu.org/mcp.
For information on Western CUNA Management School,
go to www.wcmspomona.org.
CU WORLD / 7
ETHIOPIA’S CREDIT UNIONS TRAIN
MEMBERS FOR SUCCESS
Article and Photography by Michael Muckian
CU WORLD / 8
T
he arid highlands of northeastern
Ethiopia are painted in dusky
shades of golden brown, an ancient land
too long ill-used and largely depleted of
its resources. Farmers scrape at the dusty
soil with wooden tools and ox-drawn
plowshares, struggling to cultivate even
a subsistence living. Despite their dawnto-dusk efforts, less than half of the
country’s farmers are able to meet their
own nutritional needs.
Fortunately, Ethiopia’s credit unions have stepped forward to
help thanks in large part to a World Council of Credit Unions
program funded by the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA)
that is designed to improve members’ lives. The program
provides farmer training in financial management and effective
farming methods, coupled with a member savings program and
increased access to credit.
“Our plan is to change our lifestyle,” said Gebremichael
Mehari, chairman of Biruh Tesfa Rural Savings and Credit Cooperative (RUSACCO), or credit union, located 40 km. (about 25
miles) from the city of Mekele.
Biruh Tesfa RUSACCO is housed in a one-room building
constructed of cut stone, a resource Ethiopia has in abundance.
An open doorway and single rough window, shaded with
corrugated tin, are the RUSACCO’s only source of light and
ventilation. Yet as many as 30 farmers — both men and women
– crowd into the room once a month, sitting on stones or on the
RUSACCO’s dirt floor to learn about everything from savings
management to beekeeping to animal husbandry.
With only 90 members, 14 of whom are children, the
RUSACCO barely has the resources to survive, much less
make member loans. The World Council program, funded by
the monetization of 23,000 tons of wheat provided by USDA’s
Food for Progress program, has improved
the capital base of this and other tiny
ETHIOPIA
Mekele
TOP Northern Ethiopia’s arid conditions provide a
challenge for farmers.
BOTTOM LEFT Much of the country’s agricultural
work, including the threshing of grain, is done by
individuals with simple hand tools.
Addis Ababa
BOTTOM RIGHT Development agent Redai Halefom
leads a class on fattening cattle for a group of Ethiopian farmers who are members of Sasun RUSACCO.
CU WORLD / 9
RUSACCOs, increasing loan capabilities and making it possible
for members to save.
“Now that we have savings, we can support each other,”
Mehari said. “That is our culture.”
ADDRESSING A CRITICAL NEED
World Council’s back-to-basics educational program is critical
to helping lift the country out of poverty, according to Stanley
Kuehn, World Council’s program director in Ethiopia. According
to the U.S. Department of State, 85% of Ethiopians rely on agriculture as their primary income source, which accounts for 46%
of the country’s gross national product and 80% of its exports.
Frequent drought in the mostly arid north, unsustainable agricultural practices and poor infrastructure have hampered farmers’
abilities to meet a growing demand, causing almost 60% to fall
below even their own subsistence needs.
Ethiopia’s nearly 8,000 credit unions, many of which serve
fewer than 100 members, comprise a movement now more than
50 years old. The government currently mandates that each
kebele, or community of roughly 2,000 households, has its own
RUSACCO. But since the credit unions’ capital strength is based
on member deposits, institutional growth has failed to keep
up with member loan demand. Funding from World Council’s
program helps them make more loans to members, while member
education and a member savings program have strengthened the
RUSACCO’s financial stability.
“We’re not introducing new crops, but instead providing
greater access to credit so farmers have the resources they need
to increase their yields, improve their finances and feed their
communities,” Kuehn said.
THE KEY TO SURVIVAL
Increased education has been important to helping farmers like
Berihun Gebreyohannes, a member of Sasun RUSACCO. The
father of three farms a half-hectare (1.1 acres) of rented land, this
year growing a healthy crop of cabbage to help sustain his fivemember household.
Training from the RUSACCO has helped Gebreyohannes learn
better crop management techniques, and a loan of 9,000 Ethiopia
birr (about US$525) enabled him to buy a second ox and plow a
second half-hectare in preparation for planting potatoes. Along
with his two oxen, Gebreyohannes also has two dairy cows and a
handful of chickens thanks largely to the help of the RUSACCO,
making him a prosperous farmer by local standards.
Across the road, farmer Almaz Teklu also grows cabbage,
TOP LEFT Farmer Almaz Teklu supports her family of four with the production
of one dairy cow and half-acre of cabbage.
TOP RIGHT “Our plan is to change our lifestyle,” said Gebremichael Mehari,
chairman of Biruh Tesfa RUSACCO (at rear), which serves 14 children among its
90 members.
BOTTOM More than 30 farmers met in the one-room Biruh Tesfa RUSACCO
to gain financial skills and learn better agricultural techniques.
CU WORLD / 10
though about half as much as Gebreyohannes. Like her neighbor,
Teklu attends RUSACCO classes, but her road has not been an
easy one.
The single mother of four has only one dairy cow, which she
purchased with a RUSACCO loan of 3,000 birr (about US$176).
Proceeds from the sale of dairy products help Teklu pay for life’s
necessities, send her children to school and even start a very small
RUSACCO savings account of 500 birr (less than US$30).
“The RUSACCO has been very important,” Teklu said. “I
couldn’t have sent my children to school without its assistance.”
For farmers, the RUSACCO has been the key to their economic
survival, and to a brighter future for both their children and their
country.
Michael Muckian is editor of Credit Union World and World Council’s
director of marketing and communications. He can be reached at
[email protected].
LEARN MORE
For more information on World Council’s efforts in
Ethiopia, visit www.woccu.org/Ethiopia.
CU WORLD / 11
ETHIOPIA
CU WORLD / 12
H
and tools and farm animals comprise the few resources available to farmers in Ethiopia, a country evenly
divided along religious lines between the Ethiopian Orthodox Christian Church and the Muslim faith.
Nearly 85% of Ethiopians rely on agriculture as their primary income source, but physical and financial
challenges have hampered farmers’ abilities to meet a growing demand, causing nearly 60% to fall below even their
own subsistence needs. Thanks to funding realized through the monetization of 23,000 metric tons of wheat provided
by the U.S. Department of Agriculture, World Council of Credit Unions is teaching farmers better agricultural
techniques and good financial practices so they can increase their yields, gain a better market price for their crops,
strengthen their communities and improve their lives.
- Michael Muckian
CU WORLD / 13
SKOK Refineria member Jezrzyk Wojtek (left) and member-chairman Piotr Ceynowa confer outside
Group Lotos, Poland’s second largest oil refinery and their employer. The credit union has grown
from a single-person office on the refinery’s grounds to 25 branches throughout Poland.
CU WORLD / 14
Capitalizing on
COLLABORATION
Poland’s Credit Unions Retain Individuality through Unified Systems
article and photography by michael muckian
P
olish entrepreneur Zygmunt Richert
owns an auto repair firm in Pionierów,
near Gdańsk on the country’s Baltic Sea
coast. Eleven years ago, Richert teetered on
the edge of bankruptcy, unable to renegotiate
loan terms with Stockholm-based Nordea
Bank, his primary financial institution, and
faced economic collapse.
Then Richert found SKOK Wybrzeże, a
US$40 million credit union that worked with
the entrepreneur to pay off his high-interest
bank loan and stabilize his financial situation.
Today, Richert owns several businesses and
a personal fleet of luxury automobiles. By
Poland’s standards, he’s a wealthy man,
attributing his success to hard work and his
credit union’s support.
“My credit union respects me as a member.
I’m not afraid of them like I was afraid of
the bank,” Richert said. “Now I am a
desirable bank client and could do business
anywhere, but I have no interest in leaving my
credit union.”
Richert’s story is encouraging for a country
that emerged less than 25 years ago from
Soviet rule, but it reflects the powerful
influence Poland’s credit unions have had in
helping consumers realize their financial goals.
By collaborating to provide a comprehensive
range of services and marketing under a
unified brand, Poland’s credit unions have
become a vibrant force serving a relatively
young free-market economy.
“We promote cooperation among credit
unions that allow smaller institutions to
operate successfully,” said Wiktor Kamiński,
vice president of the National Association
of Cooperative Savings & Credit Unions
(NACSCU), Poland’s credit union trade group
based in Sopot. “That’s one of the reasons
why the bankers do not like us.”
COLLABORATION FOR THE
SAKE OF COMPETITION
NACSCU currently serves 59 credit unions
of all sizes, from small institutions like
SKOK Wybrzeże to the mammoth US$1.9
billion SKOK Stefczyka, Poland’s largest
credit union with more than 370
branches. With aggregate assets of
US$4.75 billion, Poland’s credit
unions serve 2.2 million members
through 1,870 branches, and the
system continues to grow.
All credit unions operate
under the acronym SKOK,
short for spółdzielcze kasy
oszczędnościowo-kredytowe
POLAND
Gdańsk
Warsaw
“All Polish credit unions operate as part of one system and we have the economic
value of being in one group...we have a variety of credit unions following a single
successful method adjusted accordingly to meet their needs.” - Wiktor Kamiński
CU WORLD / 15
(credit union), and carry the same visual
brand. Nationwide brand identification
supports the Polish system’s unity and
strength, while allowing individual small
credit unions to maintain their own identities,
set their own rates and offer individualized
services to members.
National-level marketing efforts portray
credit unions as a good place for savings
and consumer loans, Kaminski said. After
first establishing greater public awareness,
NACSCU began tapping celebrity spokespersons the association felt embodied credit union
values. The list has included pole vaulting
champion Władysław Kozakiewicz, who won
a gold medal in the 1980 Moscow Olympics,
and soccer star Emmanuel Olisadebe.
The current marketing campaign uses
Polish film and television actor Artur
Żmijewski, star of the popular series Ojciec
Mateusz (“Father Matthew”) about a
crime-solving priest-detective. Żmijewski
was chosen based his public persona as an
honest, reliable person and family man, traits
NACSCU believes represent the goals of
Poland’s credit union system.
“Poland’s unified approach to credit union
Participants in World
Council’s 2011 Polish
credit union study
program led by President and CEO Brian
Branch included (from
left) Joseph Bergeron,
Association of Vermont
CUs; Anthony Emerson,
CU League of Connecticut; Michael Mercer,
Georgia CU Affiliates;
Anne Cochran, Louisiana CU League; Monika
Tarnowska, NACSCU
(Poland); Diana Dykstra,
California and Nevada
CU Leagues; Branch;
John Radebaugh, North
Carolina CU League;
Dennis Tanimoto,
Hawaii CU League;
Michael Banks, NACSCU; Patricia Sowick,
CUNA and ACCUL; and
Troy Stang, Northwest
CU Association.
CU WORLD / 16
marketing has meant success for institutions
of all sizes,” said Brian Branch, World
Council president and CEO who led a group
of U.S. credit union league and association
executives to Poland in October 2011 to
study the country’s credit union strategies.
“Collaboration among credit unions has
resulted in dramatic growth that has been
beneficial to Poland’s credit union system.”
UNIFIED BRANDING AND BEYOND
In addition to unified branding, NACSCU
works with suppiers to provide its credit
unions with centralized data processing,
electronic banking services, transaction card
processing, deposit protection, settlement
services and sources of capital. In 2010, a
group of seven credit unions under patronage
of NACSCU established Kasy Stefczyka, a
management group headed by SKOK Stefczyka
to coordinate marketing and technology
functions from centralized sources to improve
efficiency and effectiveness for a growing
number of credit unions applying its model.
NACSCU’s own progression from a
movement to a unified system has driven the
country’s credit union development. In the
early 1990s, the Polish movement underwent
of a period of “organic” growth. Credit
unions were established, membership began
to grow and the credit unions contributed
to an initial voluntary self-guarantee system,
depositing stabilization funds and capital
reserves with NACSCU.
By the late 1990s, the movement evolved
into a national system. New credit union
laws went into effect and nationwide
branding campaigns were launched from a
central marketing fund. NACSCU developed
affiliated companies to support credit union
development through enhanced services. Credit
unions merged, and the branch network began
growing to meet increasing member demands
with a more consolidated presence.
“In reality, all Polish credit unions operate
as part of one system, and we have the
economic value of being in one group,”
Kaminski said. “Instead of merging credit
unions into a single enterprise, however, we
have a variety of credit unions following a
single successful model adjusted accordingly
to meet their needs.”
That model, administered by Kasy
Stefczyka, marks a third evolutionary step
for Poland’s credit union system. Through
the trade association and the management
group, credit unions can capitalize on both
economies of scale and system-wide expertise,
Kaminski said. But the system allows them
to maintain their individual identities as they
concentrate on increasing service levels and
building member loyalty.
A GOOD RELATIONSHIP
ABOVE LEFT SKOK
.
Wybreze member
SKOK Rafineria in Gdańsk has benefitted from Zygmunt Richert
(foreground)
these evolutionary efforts. Formed in 1992
became prosperous
by a single employee in a small office on the
in his business
grounds of Group Lotos, Poland’s second largest thanks to his credit
oil refinery and Gdańsk’s largest employer,
union, managed
the now US$45 million credit union serves
by Marek Tandek,
16,000 members from 25 branches throughout president, (left
Poland. The credit union recently began serving rear) and Zygfryd
Schoenhoff,
farmers and is one of very few Polish credit
unions licensed to administer European Union- chairman.
subsidized agricultural loans.
ABOVE RIGHT
A member
completes a
Despite SKOK Rafineria’s small size, the
transaction at one
credit union offers members competitive
of the 370 branches
services and better rates than banks through
of SKOK Stefczyka,
unified services provided by the trade
Poland’s largest
association, according to credit union president credit union.
Jan Lechmyc. The increased competitive
capabilities have been good for both the credit
union and its members.
“Our members can count on us because we
rely on them,” Lechmyc said. Refinery worker
Piotr Ceynowa, SKOK Rafineria’s board
chair, agreed. “It’s a very good relationship,”
he added.
Thanks to the active group and centralization
of the Polish system, the same can be said for
NACSCU, its credit unions and the members
they serve.
Michael Muckian is editor of Credit Union World
and World Council’s director of marketing and
communications. He can be reached at mmuckian@
woccu.org.
CU WORLD / 17
City of
Solidarity
GDAŃSK, POLAND, WELCOMES THE 2012 WORLD CREDIT UNION CONFERENCE
By Jennifer Ballweg
W
ith its old world charm and beautiful
coastline, the thousand-year-old city
of Gdańsk, Poland, is best known
for the critical role it played in
shaping world events that led to the collapse
of communism.
World War II began in Gdańsk on Sept. 1,
1939, and eventually leveled the city, putting
CU WORLD / 18
it under Nazi control and later, communist
rule. During the post-war period, Gdańsk
became a beacon in the Polish pursuit
of freedom. The Solidarity movement, a
non-violent social action group led by former
electrician Lech Wałęsa, was born in 1980
after a Gdańsk shipyard strike.
The unrelenting peaceful energy of the
Solidarity movement eventually brought
“If it weren’t for the Polish
Solidarity, apartheid would
not have been abolished in
South Africa.”
Frederik Willem de Klerk
Former President of South Africa
Nobel Peace Prize Laureate
“My dream has come true, I’m
in the city where the rush for
freedom began.”
The 24th Dalai Lama
“You gave the impulse for
political change in Central
Europe. Half a dozen
European revolutions began
in this shipyard.”
Ronald Reagan
Former President of the United States
freedom to Poland, helped erode Europe’s
post-war division and led to the fall
of communism.
it teaches may well describe the future of
the global credit union movement. (See
“Capitalizing on Collaboration” on page 14.)
Like the city itself, Poland’s credit union
system was sparked by the Solidarity
movement with the same unrelenting energy,
making it one of the most successful credit
union systems in the world today. The lessons
This year, the Polish credit union movement
celebrates 20 years of serving members.
The city will again make history as host of
the 2012 World Credit Union Conference,
where credit union movements from around
CU WORLD / 19
“In Gdańsk, you changed
the course of the history of
Europe and the world. The
values which solidarity
fought for are the pillars
of common values, under
the rule of law, which
today constitute the
European Union.”
José Manuel Barroso
President of the European Commission
Former Prime Minister of Portugal
Gdansk’s historic
Old Town is the site
of the 2012 World
Credit Union
Conference.
the world will come together to create their
own brand of solidarity. The conference
is co-hosted by the National Association
of Co-operative Savings & Credit Unions
(NACSCU), World Council’s member
organization in Poland, and will be held
July 15–18, 2012, at the Polish Baltic
Philharmonic Hall.
The conference will focus on four main
educational tracks: leadership and strategy;
credit unions on the frontier; compliance,
regulations and political affairs; and
technology and innovation. In addition,
participants will learn from the Polish credit
union system’s success and have the chance to
see Polish credit unions in action.
Attendees will also delight in Gdańsk’s Old
Town, ground zero for this year’s conference
with cafes, clubs, shops, theaters and nearby
parks that offer cycling, hiking and other
events to provide just the right amount of
adventure. Pre- and post-tours will give
attendees an inside look at the beauty and
history of the surrounding area.
Spouses and guests can participate in day
tours that offer something for everyone from
history buffs to jewelry connoisseurs. Tours
range from historical sites and monuments,
including Malbork Castle, the world’s largest
fortification, to museums and shops that
highlight Gdańsk’s status as the world’s
amber capital.
CU WORLD / 20
In addition to the World Credit Union
Conference, the Global Women’s Leadership
Network will host its annual forum on
July 14–15. The day prior, the Worldwide
Foundation for Credit Unions will hold
its annual golf tournament to benefit the
network at the Sierra Golf Club in Petkowice,
Poland. There will also be a special invitationonly reception for WOCCU Supporters
during the event. For more information on
becoming a WOCCU Supporter, visit www.
woccu.org/supporters.
Gdańsk has influenced the world in many
ways, and it promises to leave conference
attendees full of new energy, creativity and
drive. Experience true credit union solidarity
— register now to join 1,200 credit union
leaders from around the world and become a
part of history.
Jennifer Ballweg is World Council’s marketing officer.
She can be reached at [email protected].
LET’S GDAŃSK!
Visit www.letsgdansk2012.org to see more from
Gdańsk and learn more about the conference.
Play a round in Poland!
Worldwide Foundation Golf Tournament
July 14, 2012 (one day before the conference)
~ Presented by CO-OP Financial Services ~
Are you coming to Gdańsk for the World Credit Union Conference? Arrive a day early and enjoy 18 holes on a
master-class course filled with numerous hills, valleys, streams and backwaters. Join credit union leaders from
around the world on Saturday, July 14, 2012, at the Sierra Golf Club in Petkowice, Poland, as both men and
women compete in the Worldwide Foundation for Credit Unions’ charity golf tournament benefiting the
Global Women’s Leadership Network.
Bring a foursome, or sign up as a single and be matched up with your global credit union peers. Registration is
US$275 (US$325 after May 11, 2012) and includes transportation to and from select conference hotels, breakfast,
lunch, green fees, prizes and cart rental.
Space and club rental are limited —
register online at www.woccu.org/golf today!
A S pecial T hanks
Global Level ($10,000 and up)
CO-OP Financial Services
CUNA Mutual Group
FSCC
Mitchell, Stankovic & Associates
Continental Level ($5,000-$9,999)
Arizona State Credit Union
CU*Answers
Melrose Credit Union
Patelco Credit Union
to our
Ser Technology
SWBC
Transaction Network Services
Ventura County Credit Union
Country Level ($1,000-$4,999)
Affinity Federal Credit Union
Burns-Fazzi, Brock & Associates
CU Direct Lending
CUES
Langley Federal Credit Union
2011 G olf T ournament S ponsors !
Premier America Credit Union
ProCon Group
PS Onboarding
San Mateo Credit Union
Travis Credit Union
Turner, Warren, Hwang & Conrad
Xceed Financial Credit Union
State Level ($500-$999)
Citizens First Credit Union
Orange County’s Credit Union
Redwood Credit Union
SkyOne Federal Credit Union
For a complete list of sponsor
opportunities, contact Valerie Breunig,
Worldwide Foundation executive director,
at +1-608-395-2055 or foundation@
woccu.org.
All figures in U.S. dollars.
CU WORLD / 21
SILVER INDIVIDUALS
$5,000 - $9,999
Valerie Brown - William Mapother Memorial - Bowling Green, KY, USA
BRONZE INDIVIDUALS
$1,000 - $4,999
Joaquin Baca-Asay & Jen Kim - New York, NY, USA
Carroll & Ruth Beach - Westminster, CO, USA
Valerie Brown - Bowling Green, KY, USA
Drayton Carter - St. Thomas, Barbados
Kathy Chartier - Stamford, CT, USA
David & Kris Chatfield - Prescott, AZ, USA
Christine Cheney - Washington, DC, USA
Anne Cochran - Harahan, LA, USA
Dennis & Shelby Cutter - Spokane, WA, USA
Tom Decker - Arlington, VA, USA
Mary Martha Fortney - Centreville, VA, USA
Teresa Freeborn & Douglas Regelous - Redondo Beach, CA, USA
John & Deborah Gilbert - Brighton, Australia
Ron & Marsha Hance - Rutland, VT, USA
Roger & Chris Heacock - Rapid City, SD, USA
Lucy Ito - Ontario, CA, USA
Barry & Carole Jolette - Pleasanton, CA, USA
Lois Kitsch - Washington, DC, USA
Jennifer Leete - Sydney, NSW, Australia
Harriet May - El Paso, TX, USA
Judy McCartney - Sedona, AZ, USA
Richard Miller - Bowling Green, KY, USA
Mary L. Mohr - Leesburg, VA, USA
Rebecca Nixon - Mountain View, CA, USA
Raymond Norkus - Dearborn, MI, USA
Louise Petschler - Sydney, NSW, Australia
Dennis Pierce - Lenexa, KS, USA
Laura Pizzarelli - Duluth, GA, USA
Julia F. Rainer - Northfield, IL, USA
Catherine Roberts - Dearborn, MI, USA
Cliff & Elayne Archer Rosenthal - Brooklyn, NY, USA
Marlene Shiels - Edinburgh, Scotland, UK
Randy Smith - New Braunfels, TX, USA
Michael Stankovic - Boulder City, NV, USA
Shari Storm - Seattle, WA, USA
Joanne & Jeffrey Todd - Windham, CT, USA
Patsy & John Van Ouwerkerk - Vacaville, CA, USA
Joseph Wambach - Harrisburg, PA, USA
Josette Wambach - Harrisburg, PA, USA
CRYSTAL INDIVIDUALS
$500 - $999
Julie Allen & William Walters - Madison, WI, USA
Camille & Jo-Anne Berube - Beaumont, AB, Canada
Valerie Breunig - Madison, WI, USA
Gene & Helena Brody - Monroe Township, NJ, USA
Lee Butke - Columbus, OH, USA
Beatrice Clegg - De Pere, WI, USA
Teresa Clegg - Madison, WI, USA
Thomas & Isabelle Connors - Ogden, UT, USA
Pete Crear - Peoria, AZ, USA
Richard DuPuis - Topsham, ME, USA
Gerry & Pat Foley - Dublin, Ireland
Bruce & Melissa Foulke - Worcester, PA, USA
Diana Gettinger - Madison, WI, USA
Bert & Joan Hash - Ellicott City, MD, USA
Joseph Herbst - East Greenbush, NY, USA
Gerald A Hogan - Wilkes-Barre, PA, USA
Margaret Holliday - Pasadena, CA, USA
Fred Johnson - Middleton, WI, USA
Ray & Frances Johnson - Brodhead, WI, USA
Betty Kernaghan - Independence, MO, USA
Katherine Kirby - Brownville, ME, USA
William Knight - Ottawa, ON, Canada
Andrew & Sandra Lingler - Elyria, OH, USA
John & Kathryne Link - Mason Neck, VA, USA
Mark Massey - Bedford, TX, USA
Greg & Karen Moser - Madison, WI, USA
Kerry Parker - Austin, TX, USA
Manuel Rabines Ripalda - Lima, Peru
Bob & Diane Schumacher - Kenmore, WA, USA
Marion Smith - Queens Village, NY, USA
Patricia Smith - Portland, OR, USA
Katherine Stewart - Madison, WI, USA
Jack & Jenni Van Kauwenbergh - Madison, WI, USA
PLATINUM
$50,000 - $99,999
CUNA Mutual Group - Madison, WI, USA
State Employees’ Credit Union - Raleigh, NC, USA
Vancity, Vancouver, BC, Canada
SAPPHIRE
$25,000 - $49,999
CO-OP Financial Services - Rancho Cucamonga, CA, USA
Irish League of Credit Unions - Dublin, Ireland
CU WORLD / 22
World Council of Credit Unions would like to thank those
who have become WOCCU Supporters. Your generosity empowers people to help
themselves through credit unions in some of the world's most difficult places.
GOLD
$10,000 - $24,999
AACUL - Washington, DC, USA
American Heritage Federal Credit Union - Philadelphia, PA, USA
Boeing Employees Credit Union - Seattle, WA, USA
Caja Popular de Ahorros Yanga, S.C. de A.P. de R.L. de C.V. - Yanga, Veracruz,
Mexico
California & Nevada Credit Union Leagues - Ontario, CA, USA
Central 1 Credit Union - Vancouver, BC, Canada
Cooperativa de Ahorro y Crédito OSCUS Ltda - Ambato, Ecuador
CU*Answers - Grand Rapids, MI, USA
Credit Union Association of New York - Albany, NY, USA
Credit Union Development Association (CUDA) - Dublin, Ireland
Credit Union Executives Society - Fitchburg, WI, USA
Financial Service Centers Cooperative, Inc. - Ontario, CA, USA
Iowa Credit Union League - Des Moines, IA, USA
Melrose Credit Union - Briarwood, NY, USA
Mountain West Credit Union Association - Phoenix, AZ, USA
National Association of Co-operative Savings & Credit Unions - Sopot, Poland
Ohio Credit Union System - Columbus, OH, USA
Pennsylvania Credit Union Association - Harrisburg, PA, USA
Pennsylvania State Employees Credit Union - Harrisburg, PA, USA
SchoolsFirst Federal Credit Union - Santa Ana, CA, USA
Servus Credit Union - Edmonton, AB, Canada
Suncoast Schools Federal Credit Union - Tampa, FL, USA
Susan Evelyn Mitchell Foundation Fund - Boulder City, NV, USA
Teachers Credit Union - Silverwater, Australia
Texas Credit Union League & Affiliates - Dallas, TX, USA
Wisconsin Credit Union League, The - Pewaukee, WI, USA
United Nations Federal Credit Union - Long Island City, NY, USA
Westminster Savings Credit Union - New Westminster, BC, Canada
SILVER
$5,000 - $9,999
Aberdeen Proving Ground Federal Credit Union - Aberdeen, MD, USA
Alliant Credit Union - Chicago, IL, USA
Arizona State Credit Union - Phoenix, AZ, USA
Association of Vermont Credit Unions - South Burlington, VT, USA
Barbados Public Workers’ Co-operative Credit Union - St. Michael, Barbados
Barksdale Federal Credit Union - Barksdale, LA, USA
Belize Credit Union League Ltd. - Belize City, Belize
California Credit Union - Glendale, CA, USA
Coast Central Credit Union - Eureka, CA, USA
Community America Credit Union - Lenexa, KS, USA
Confederação Interestadual das Cooperativas Ligadas ao Sicredi Porto Alegre, RS, Brazil
Credit Union 24, Inc. - Tallahassee, FL, USA
Credit Union Australia - Brisbane, QLD, Australia
Credit Union Central Alberta Ltd. - Calgary, AB, Canada
Credit Union Direct Corporation - Ontario, CA, USA
Dundalk Credit Union - Co Louth, Ireland
Federacion Nacional de Cooperativas de Ahorro y Credito de Guatemala Ciudad de Guatemala, Guatemala
GECU - El Paso, TX, USA
Jamaica Teachers’ Association Cooperative Credit Union - Kingston, Jamaica
Jefferson Financial Credit Union - Metairie, LA, USA
League of Southeastern Credit Unions - Birmingham, AL, USA
Local Government Federal Credit Union - Raleigh, NC, USA
Louisiana Credit Union League - Harahan, LA, USA
Matanuska Valley Federal Credit Union - Palmer, AK, USA
mecu Ltd. - Kew, VIC, Australia
Michigan Credit Union League - Lansing, MI, USA
Minnesota Credit Union Network - St. Paul, MN, USA
Municipal Credit Union - New York, NY, USA
Municipal Employees Credit Union of Baltimore, Inc. - Baltimore, MD, USA
Newbridge Credit Union Ltd. - Kildare, Ireland
NIH Federal Credit Union - Rockville, MD, USA
NorthCountry Federal Credit Union - South Burlington, VT, USA
Northwest Federal Credit Union - Herndon, VA, USA
Ohio Credit Union Foundation - Columbus, OH, USA
Ontario Credit Union Charitable Foundation (OCUCF) Stoney Creek, ON, Canada
Patelco Credit Union - Pleasanton, CA, USA
Pentagon Federal Credit Union - Alexandria, VA, USA
Redwood Credit Union - Santa Rosa, CA, USA
RTE Credit Union Ltd - Dublin, Ireland
San Francisco Federal Credit Union - San Francisco, CA, USA
San Mateo Credit Union - Redwood City, CA, USA
SECU Maryland - Linthicum, MD, USA
Ser Technology Corporation - Dallas, TX, USA
SGE Credit Union Ltd. - Sydney, NSW, Australia
State Employees Federal Credit Union - Albany, NY, USA
Summit Credit Union - Madison, WI, USA
SWBC - San Antonio, TX, USA
Transaction Network Services, Inc. - Reston, VA, USA
Travis Credit Union - Vacaville, CA, USA
Universal 1 Credit Union - Dayton, OH, USA
University of Wisconsin Credit Union - Madison, WI, USA
Ventura County Credit Union - Ventura, CA, USA
continued on next page ➞
CU WORLD / 23
WOCCU SUPPORTERS
BRONZE
$1,000 - $4,999
AELUCOOP - Pueblo Libre, Peru
Affinity Federal Credit Union - Basking Ridge, NJ, USA
Agriculture Federal Credit Union - Alexandria, VA, USA
Alliance Credit Union - Fenton, MO, USA
Anheuser-Busch Employees Credit Union - St. Louis, MO, USA
Asociación de Instituciones Rurales de Ahorro y Crédito, Inc. Santo Domingo, Dominican Republic
Atlantic Central - Halifax, NS, Canada
Atlantic Regional Federal Credit Union - Brunswick, ME, USA
Bay Ridge Federal Credit Union - Brooklyn, NY, USA
BCU - Vernon Hills, IL, USA
Beehive Federal Credit Union - Rexburg, ID, USA
Belco Community Credit Union - Harrisburg, PA, USA
Bishopstown Credit Union Ltd. - Bishopstown, Cork, Ireland
BIU Credit Union Co-op Society - Hamilton, Bermuda
Black Hills Federal Credit Union - Rapid City, SD, USA
BMI Federal Credit Union - Dublin, OH, USA
Burns-Fazzi, Brock & Associates - Charlotte, NC, USA
Caja Popular Las Huastecas S.C. De A.P. De R.L. De C.V. - Queretaro, Mexico
Caja Zongolica S.C. de R.L. de C.V. - Col. Centro Zongolica, Veracruz, Mexico
California Bear Credit Union - Los Angeles, CA, USA
Canning’s Employees’ Credit Union - Port of Spain, Trinidad & Tobago
Canyon State Credit Union - Phoenix, AZ, USA
Capital Credit Union - Edinburgh, Scotland, UK
Caribbean Confederation of Credit Unions - Fortlands, Basseterre, St. Kitts & Nevis
Caribbean CUDE Program - Castries, St. Lucia, West Indies
Central de Cooperativas del Area Nacional Ltda. - Asunción, Paraguay
Chinook Credit Union Ltd. - Brooks, AB, Canada
Christian Community Credit Union - San Dimas, CA, USA
CoastHills Federal Credit Union - Lompoc, CA, USA
Comhar Linn INTO Credit Union Ltd. - Dublin, Ireland
Communicating Arts Credit Union - Detroit, MI, USA
Communicating Arts Credit Union - Ohio - Cincinnati, OH, USA
Community Credit Union of Florida - Rockledge, FL, USA
Congressional Federal Credit Union - Oakton, VA, USA
Coolock Artane Credit Union Limited - Dublin, Ireland
Cooperativa de Ahorro y Crédito ABACO - Lima, Peru
COOPESERVIDORES, R.L. - San Jose, Costa Rica
Co-op Services Credit Union - Livonia, MI, USA
Corporate America Credit Union - Irondale, AL, USA
CPM Federal Credit Union - North Charleston, SC, USA
Credit Union Association of Oklahoma - Oklahoma City, OK, USA
Credit Union Baywide - Hastings, New Zealand
Credit Union Foundation of Colorado & Wyoming - Denver, CO, USA
Credit Union League of Connecticut - Meriden, CT, USA
Credit Union North - Mt. Maunganui, New Zealand
Defense Credit Union Council - Washington, DC, USA
CU WORLD / 24
CANADA
Dubco Credit Union - Dublin, Ireland
Dupaco Community Credit Union - Dubuque, IA, USA
Dynamic Federal Credit Union - Celian, OH, USA
Eagle River Credit Union - L’Anse au Loup, NF, Canada
Educational Employees Credit Union - Fresno, CA, USA
Elevations Credit Union - Boulder, CO, USA
El Paso Corporation Federal Credit Union - Houston, TX, USA
Fairfax County Federal Credit Union - Fairfax, VA, USA
Fairwinds Credit Union - Orlando, FL, USA
Federación de Cooperativas de Ahorro y Credito de Costa Rica R.L. San Jose, Costa Rica
Fintech Kenya Ltd. - Nairobi, Kenya
First Class American Credit Union - Fort Worth, TX, USA
First Community Credit Union - Chesterfield, MO, USA
First Credit Union - Hamilton, New Zealand
First Entertainment Credit Union - Hollywood, CA, USA
First Source Federal Credit Union - New Hartford, NY, USA
First South Credit Union - Barlett, TN, USA
floridacentral Credit Union - Tampa, FL, USA
Fox Communities Credit Union - Appleton, WI, USA
Gesa Credit Union - Richland, WA, USA
GESRO Co-op Credit Union - Takoradi, Ghana
Glasgow Credit Union - Glasgow, Scotland, UK
Greater Vancouver Community Credit Union - Burnaby, BC, Canada
Gwinnett Federal Credit Union - Lawrenceville, GA, USA
HarborOne Credit Union - Brockton, MA, USA
Heritage Credit Union - Madison, WI, USA
Heritage Family Federal Credit Union - Rutland, VT, USA
Hiway Federal Credit Union - St. Paul, MN, USA
IBM Southeast Employees Federal Credit Union - Boca Raton, FL, USA
Illinois Credit Union System - Naperville, IL, USA
Inova Federal Credit Union - Elkhart, IN, USA
Jamaica Co-operative Credit Union League Ltd - Kingston, Jamaica
Kansas Credit Union Association - Wichita, KS, USA
Keesler Federal Credit Union - Biloxi, MS, USA
Kenya Bankers SACCO Society Ltd. - Nairobi, Kenya
Kinecta Federal Credit Union - Manhattan Beach, CA, USA
Langley Federal Credit Union - Hampton, VA, USA
Library of Congress Federal Credit Union - Hyattsville, MD, USA
Maine Credit Union League - Portland, ME, USA
Maine Education Credit Union - Augusta, ME, USA
Manly Warringah Credit Union - Sydney, NSW, Australia
Maritime, Mining & Power Credit Union - Sydney, NSW, Australia
Metro Credit Union - Chelsea, MA, USA
Mission Federal Credit Union - San Diego, CA, USA
Montana Credit Union Network - Helena, MT, USA
Motorola Employees Credit Union - Schaumburg, IL, USA
Mullingar Credit Union Ltd. - Mullingar, Ireland
Mwalimu Co-operative Savings & Credit Society Ltd. - Nairobi, Kenya
Please join us!
Help WOCCU empower people to grow through credit unions
by becoming a WOCCU Supporter at one of these levels:
DIAMOND
$100,000+
PLATINUM
$50,000 - $99,999
SAPPHIRE
$25,000 - $49,999
GOLD
$10,000 - $24,999
SILVER
$5,000 - $9,999
BRONZE
$1,000 - $4,999
CRYSTAL
FRIEND
$500 - $999
Less than $500
Amounts listed in U.S. dollars. Gifts are fully U.S. tax-deductible.
Note: Individuals recognized at the crystal level and
above; organizations at bronze and above.
CONTACT US
National Association of State Credit Union Supervisors - Arlington, VA, USA
National Credit Union Federation of Korea - Daejeon, South Korea
New Jersey Credit Union League - East Windsor, NJ, USA
New Zealand Association of Credit Unions - Auckland, New Zealand
Numerica Credit Union - Spokane Valley, WA, USA
Onboarding Services - Pepper Pike, OH, USA
Orange County’s Credit Union - Santa Ana, CA, USA
Oregon Credit Union Foundation - Beaverton, OR, USA
Postal Credit Union - Woodbury, MN, USA
Premier America Credit Union - Chatsworth, CA, USA
Queensland Teachers Mutual Bank - Brisbane, Australia
Redstone Federal Credit Union - Huntsville, AL, USA
Rush Credit Union - Dublin, Ireland
Scotwest Credit Union - Glasgow, Scotland, UK
Selfreliance Ukrainian American Federal Credit Union - Chicago, IL, USA
Service One Credit Union - Bowling Green, KY, USA
South Division Credit Union - Evergreen Park, IL, USA
SouthPoint Federal Credit Union - Sleepy Eye, MN, USA
Southwest Washington Chapter of Credit Unions - Vancouver, WA, USA
Spectrum Federal Credit Union - San Francisco, CA, USA
St. Agnes Credit Union - Dublin, Ireland
St. Anthony’s and Claddagh Credit Union Ltd. - Galway, Ireland
State Department Federal Credit Union - Alexandria, VA, USA
Stima SACCO - Nairobi, Kenya
TCC Credit Co-operative Limited - Singapore, Singapore
Terrific Solutions Inc - The Colony, TX, USA
The Bahamas Co-operative League Limited - Nassau, Bahamas
The Tennessee Credit Union - Nashville, TN, USA
Toronto Catholic School Board Employees’ Credit Union Ltd. Toronto, ON, Canada
Trinidad and Tobago Credit Union Deposit Insurance Fund Cooperative
Society Ltd. - Chaguanas, Trinidad & Tobago
Truliant Federal Credit Union - Winstom Salem, NC, USA
TruMark Financial Credit Union - Trevose, PA, USA
TruWest Credit Union - Scottsdale, AZ, USA
Ukrainian Federal Credit Union - Rochester, NY, USA
United Communities Credit Union - Essex, ON, CAN
University Federal Credit Union - Austin, TX, USA
University of Wisconsin Credit Union - Madison, WI, USA
USA Federal Credit Union - San Diego, CA, USA
US Federal Credit Union - Burnsville, MN, USA
USF Federal Credit Union - Tampa, FL, USA
UT Federal Credit Union - Knoxville, TN, USA
Vantage Credit Union - Bridgeton, MO, USA
Veridian Credit Union - Waterloo, IA, USA
Verity Credit Union - Seattle, WA, USA
Vermont Federal Credit Union - Burlington, VT, USA
Virginia Credit Union League - Lynchburg, VA, USA
Visions Federal Credit Union - Endicott, NY, USA
WECU - Bellingham, WA, USA
Wescom Credit Union - Pasadena, CA, USA
Windsor Family Credit Union - Windsor, ON, Canada
Xceed Financial Credit Union - El Segundo, CA, USA
XCEL Federal Credit Union - Secaucus, NJ, USA
International Development Fund (IDF) Investors
Arizona State Credit Union - Phoenix, AZ, USA
Community Choice Credit Union - Farmington Hill, MI, USA
Desert Schools Federal Credit Union - Phoenix, AZ, USA
First Credit Union - Chandler, AZ, USA
floridacentral Credit Union - Tampa, FL, USA
Heritage Family Federal Credit Union - Rutland, VT, USA
Members Credit Union - Stamford, CT, USA
MountainCrest Credit Union - Everett, WA, USA
Oakland County Credit Union - Waterford, MI, USA
Providence Federal Credit Union - Portland, OR, USA
River Town Federal Credit Union - Fort Smith, AR, USA
San Francisco Fire Credit Union - San Francisco, CA, USA
TruWest Credit Union - Scottsdale, AZ, USA
USA Federal Credit Union - San Diego, CA, USA
Washington Credit Union Foundation - Federal Way, WA, USA
Worcester Credit Union - Worcester, MA, USA
Learn more or give online at
www.woccu.org
Valerie Breunig
Worldwide Foundation for Credit Unions
5710 Mineral Point Road, Madison, WI 53705 USA
Phone: +1-608-395-2055 • Email: [email protected]
List current as of December 2011.
Please contact us with any updates or corrections.
CU WORLD / 25
Update Global Economics
Adjusting to Basel III
Basel III will change the way credit unions conduct
business. Economist Glenn Westley’s February
WOCCU webinar outlined what lies ahead for
financial cooperatives worldwide.
Glenn Westley
Economist
T
he Basel Committee on Banking
Supervision developed the first capital
accord, commonly called Basel I,
in July 1988. Basel I required financial
institutions to maintain total capital of at
least 8% of risk-weighted assets (RWA). The
Basel II framework, released in June 2004,
added a capital charge for operational risk,
required that supervisors focus on primary
risks for calculating capital requirements and
demanded enhanced disclosure requirements,
including each financial institution’s risk
exposures, risk assessment processes and
capital adequacy calculations.
Basel III capital standards, published
in June 2011, narrow the definition of
acceptable capital. They call for more and
higher-quality capital to improve financial
institutions’ safety nets to aid during general
operations as well as in times of crisis.
Under Basel III, common equity tier 1
(CET1) capital must equal 4.5% or more
of RWA. This includes common equity,
retained earnings, year-to-date income
without dividends, disclosed reserves and
unrealized gains and losses recognized on the
balance sheet.
Tier 1 capital must be 6% or more of RWA,
an increase from Basel II standards of 4% or
greater of RWA.
Additional tier 1 capital must meet a set
of 14 specific criteria. Many current hybrid
debt/capital instruments will not qualify in
the future.
Total tier 1 and tier 2 capital must be equal
to or greater than 8% of RWA, the same
percentage required in Basel II.
Only one component of tier 2 capital is
explicitly named — general loan loss reserves
(provisions) held against unidentified losses
and freely available to meet future losses. This
CU WORLD / 26
can be a maximum of 1.25% of credit RWA,
which excludes assets added to RWA to meet
operational and market risk. Subordinated
debt also appears to pass Basel III’s criteria
for being considered part of tier 2 capital.
In addition, Basel III introduces the capital
conservation buffer and countercyclical
buffer, two new elements in defining capital
requirements.
The capital conservation buffer is triggered
by low levels of financial institution capital
and designed to restrict activities that would
compromise building capital. The conservation
buffer is composed entirely of CET1 capital
and equal to 2.5% of RWA, bringing the
CET1 minimum to 7%. Anything less is
unacceptable by Basel standards.
The countercyclical buffer is composed
entirely of CET1 capital and equal to 0 –2.5%
of RWA. This is activated in the event of
excessive credit growth and may raise the
CET1 minimum to 9.5%. The ratio credit to
the private sector/GDP indicates when the
buffer should be activated.
The countercyclical buffer slows down
excess credit growth and the possible buildup
of systemwide risk, including real estate
bubbles. The buffer also arms financial
institutions with extra capital to withstand
potentially large losses.
Basel III also introduces a leverage ratio
that serves to backstop risk-based capital
measures, providing additional protection
against excessive leverage buildup due to
errors in modeling risk or risk weight values.
No risk weights are used in computing the
leverage ratio.
LEARN MORE
To view a recording of Glenn Westley’s webinar on
Basel III and its impact, go to www.woccu.org/
Basel_III_Compliance_I. The recording is available
for viewing through July 2012.
cole Bice
Photograph by Ni
“In 2011, we purchased land with the help of credit union donations to build a new facility
for Busia Compassionate Centre, an orphanage in rural Kenya. Once we started to drill the
well, we needed to keep the area and materials safe. Brian Branch, WOCCU president and
CEO, and Bruce Foulke, president and CEO of American Heritage Federal Credit Union in
Philadelphia, were part of a U.S. delegation that arrived to help secure the area.
With the help of the older boys from the orphanage and a few community members and
despite the heat we fenced the entire 3.5 acres in just 5 days.”
– Nicole Bice,
WOCCU Business Manager
CU WORLD / 27
World Council of Credit Unions
5710 Mineral Point Road
Madison, WI 53705-4493 USA
PRSRT STD
U.S. Postage
PAID
Madison, WI
Permit No.
1949
With 1,000 years of exceptionally intense history — full of
unexpected twists and turns paired with amazing economic
and cultural development — Gdańsk, Poland, is full of old-world
charm, seaside views on the Baltic coast and a strong history
of solidarity.
Add 1,200 of your credit union peers to the mix, and you have
the makings of a World Credit Union Conference like no other.
Join us July 15-18, 2012, in Poland.
Isn’t it time for you to Gdańsk?
Co-hosted by:
www.letsgdansk2012.org