By Walter Kish
Several weeks ago, the largest Ukrainian credit union in Canada announced that it will be merging with the fourth largest. The Ukrainian Credit Union of Toronto with over 19,000 members and some $230 million in assets will be joining with the So-Use Credit Union of Toronto, with some 6,000 members and $70 million in assets. Obviously the new entity will be much stronger and in a better position to compete with the large banks and other financial institutions that now proliferate in Canada. The financial services sector has seen major changes in the past several decades, and what was once a sector known more for its conservativism and unchanging continuity rather than innovation and customer service has now become a fiercely competitive battleground. If Ukrainian credit unions are to survive and prosper they need to join forces and consolidate their efforts.
I am pleased to see that these two credit unions have looked seriously at the future and decided that it is in their best interests as well as that of their members to become one. Combined, they will have much more financial clout as well as the ability to make the kind of investments that will enable them to keep pace with technology and offer the wide range of electronic banking services that will allow them to compete with the major banks.
The reality is that most smaller financial institutions in Canada today, and credit unions especially, are in a battle for survival. As the federal government has removed the various limitations and constraints on what banks could do, we have seen the emergence of a new type of bank, one that offers a broad spectrum of banking, investment, and insurance services, in one convenient location. Increasingly, that location is also becoming virtual, and centred on the PC that you have in your home. To compete, credit unions must keep pace, and to do so requires major investments. The smaller the institution, the less able it is to make these investments on which its future depends. This is why it is crucial for Ukrainian credit unions to come together and ideally unite under one corporate umbrella.
There are those that would ask why do we need “Ukrainian” credit unions at all? What difference does it make that the financial institution I do business with is Ukrainian?
First there is the historical perspective. Ukrainian credit unions enabled many of our immigrant parents and grandparents to finance their homes and businesses when the standard banking institutions wouldn’t give them the time of day. Ukrainian credit unions educated them in the intricacies of banking and enabled them to conduct their financial transactions in their mother tongue. This continues today, allowing the latest wave of Ukrainian immigrants to take care of their financial needs in their primary language.
Secondly, our credit unions have played a major role in establishing a much needed credit union system in Ukraine. Over the past nine years, through the Ukrainian Credit Union Development Assistance Program, Canada’s Ukrainian credit unions have helped set up credit unions in Ukraine by providing training, funding, consulting expertise, and organizational resources. The results have been tremendous. There are now over 500 credit unions operating on Ukrainian soil with over 100,000 members. These have provided over 70,000 private and 20,000 small business loans to help get the newly independent nation and its struggling economy rolling again.
Lastly, the Ukrainian credit unions are more than just financial institutions. They are “community” focussed and take pride and initiative in promoting and supporting Ukrainian community events and organizations. So far this year, for example, the Ukrainian Credit Union of Toronto has provided financial support and donations to various Ridna Shkolas, Ukrainian Senior Centres, Ukrainian Canadian Social Services, Ukrainian Canadian Immigrant Aid Society, Children of Chernobyl, Computers for Schools in Ukraine, church reconstruction projects in Ukraine, yarmaroks, bazaars, Ukrainian dancing groups, sadochoks, summer camps, and charity golf tournaments. Somehow, I don’t think that requests to the TD or Royal banks to support such endeavours would elicit much of a response.
If you are Ukrainian, support your credit unions. Not only will you get better services but you will be doing something concrete to help your community.