VANCOUVER–The president of the Canadian Credit Union Association said it’s clear what the threat to CUs is around the globe: it’s credit unions.
Quoting the comic strip “Pogo” by Walt Kelly, Jeff Guthrie cited the famous observation, “We have met the enemy and he is us.”
The comments by Guthrie, who noted he was speaking in his city of birth on his birthday, were made during the World Credit Union Conference (WCUC) hosted by the World Council of Credit Unions.
“We remain our biggest threat,” said Guthrie. “The minute we abandon the principles that define us, particularly (Cooperative) Principle six, cooperation among cooperatives, we lose part of what makes us so unique.’
Guthrie shared an observation by one CEO who told him, “The minute we abandon our cooperative principles, we are no different than any other financial institution.”
Where to Find Answers
So where should credit unions look for answers when it comes to the future? To the same place that presents the threat, according to Guthrie.
So, what is the future?
“The answer is short--the answer is you,” said Guthrie. “It’s the people in this room, the people back home, it’s people worldwide. It’s in the hands of all of us. The future rests in the hands of the many, not the few. The cooperative movement has always been and always will be driven by people helping people. It’s in our DNA.
Random Data Points
Meanwhile, other data points shared by Guthrie included:
- One-in-four Canadians is a CU member
- Credit unions in Canada employ 47,000 people
- 34% of directors and 30% of CEOs at Canadian credit unions are women, with a much higher percentage of women in senior leadership positions, he said.
- Credit unions in Canada preceded those in the U.S., with the first CU chartered by Alphonse Desjardins in 1900. That was nine years ahead of the chartering of St. Mary’s Bank in Manchester, N.H., which was created to serve French-speaking mill workers.