MADISON, Wis.–CUNA Mutual Group and four credit unions have become the first to commit to a new “FinHealth Fund” that is seeking to raise $10 million over the next five years.
The FinHealth Fundis being held at the National Credit Union Foundation and is focused on improving financial well-being for all by scaling existing work across the credit union movement.
In a joint statement issued by executives at CUNA Mutual Group, and the four credit unions—Chicago-based BCU, Raleigh, N.C.-based Coastal FCU and Local Government FCU, and Santa Rosa, Calif.-based Redwood CU said, “The financial health of 166 million Americans is fragile and uncertain. Now is the time to act boldly, to come together as a cooperative movement and accelerate work that can improve the financial well-being of our employees, members and communities.”
Three-Pronged Focus
According to the National CU Foundation, the FinHealth Fund has been established to capitalize a five-year program focused on three interrelated efforts:
- Creating a national resource library (e.g., current work, case studies, toolkits and other resources) to help credit unions embrace financial well-being for all as a strategic imperative
- Providing education and upskilling for credit union employees to establish a workforce ready to passionately serve people where they are in their financial lives
- Supporting industry-wide consumer research, data capture and analysis to prioritize efforts and quantify improvements to members’ financial health.
‘Calling on Peers’
“We are now calling on our credit union peers, system partners and providers to join us in raising $10 million over the next five years,” the organizations said. “We can transform lives by helping people improve their financial health. This is at the heart of why credit unions exist.”
The Foundation said CUNA Mutual Group has already pledged $1 million. Each of the four credit unions has also committed an additional $250,000.
The National Credit Union Foundation said it will act as fiduciary for the FinHealth Fund. An advisory committee will oversee and approve distributions.
The NCUF said organizations interested in supporting the fund can contribute online or contact Andre Parraway (aparraway@ncuf.coop)