By Ray Birch
SEATTLE—Sure, it’s an eye-grabbing rate, but Express Credit Union’s 9% one-year CD has turned out to be a lot more popular than the cooperative ever expected.
As CUToday.info reported, ECU began offering its 90th Anniversary CD in January. But recently, after garnering national media attention, demand for the special offer has increased tenfold, the CU said.
As CUToday.info has also been reporting, consumers have been looking to lock into certificates with the Fed widely expected to cut rates in September.
“We were established in 1934, and this special CD commemorates our longstanding commitment to our community,” CEO Helen Gibson said. “Regardless of how things have shifted or changed, we've always been committed to being a safe place for our members to put their money.”
‘Economic Justice for ALL’
Helen Gibson
In 2008, the now $22.3-million Express Credit Union won approval from the Washington State Department of Credit Unions and NCUA for a new mission of “providing widely accessible accounts and fairly priced services and loans.”
In 2010, it won the low-income CU designation and also became a CDFI.
On its website, it outlines its values and says its mission is “Economic Justice for ALL.” It further states on its website that it is a “secure alternative to banks, payday lenders, and check-cashers. We’re your path to a stable financial future.”
Looking to Stay Engaged
For now, while Express CU officially celebrated its anniversary in June, it is on a path to continuing the high-rate offer through Dec. 9.
Former CEO Paul Baudin said the credit union wanted to present members with a great offer that keeps the Express CU name in front of them and reminds them the credit union is engaged with the communities it serves through extensive community development work.
Baudin retired from his CEO role Sept. 1, and is remaining at the CU through October during the transition.
“We felt that offering this great rate throughout the year is an effective way to get that message out,” he said.
The deal is available to new members, not just existing members, and, given the rate, it’s no surprise there are some restrictions. Deposits must be new money, the maximum deposit is $5,000, and members can each open one Anniversary CD.
Paul Baudin
“The reason for that is we want to make sure that this is accessible to as many people as possible, rather than only a few,” explained Gibson, who said the credit union hoped to limit the total amount of dollars in the certificates.
Robust Interest
Yet in spite of the hopefulness, Baudin said Express CU has seeing more interest than expected.
“When we developed the idea for this program, we primarily intended it to be for our existing members and for a fairly limited group outside of our membership who really understand and support the work that we do in the community,” he said. “The thinking was we’d get maybe a couple hundred CDs over the course of the of the year, and some new members from this.”
But ECU was not anticipating that it would be featured in national media coverage or that it would be listed atop the rankings of services that track certificate rates.
“That occurred last month,” said Baudin in an August interview. “The more people who know about us the better. We're taking a positive attitude towards this, having our name spread more broadly than we ever imagined.”
Sharing a Message
“We only serve residents of Washington,” Gibson continued, noting that prevents people from out of state opening CDs even as the requests have been flowing in. “But this national coverage has given us the opportunity to share a message with a much broader group of people than we ever expected. We're excited about that opportunity to spread the word about the credit union, and the good work that we do for the people of Washington.”
Prior to the national attention, Express CU had been averaging a couple dozen new certificates per month.
“Which was more or less in line with our initial expectations,” Baudin said. “That increased by a factor of at least ten after the national coverage. And, that interest continues to remain high. We view this as a publicity windfall. We’re happy to have more folks know about. Those who reside in Washington who have opened new accounts, we're grateful for that.”
‘Honoring the Promotion’
ECU has been promoting the offer since the beginning of the year with information on its website and through other channels, noting the deal is available through almost all of 2024.
“At this stage we’re abiding by that,” Baudin said. “Among our other core values, we value honesty and trust. So, we are committed at this stage to honoring that promotion.”
ECU considers the extra attention a big assist to member growth.
“This promotion is a chance to encourage longer-term relationships, show the credit union does incredible good for its members and that we are community development financial institution,” Gibson said. “Fifty-three percent of our loan balances reside with lower-income members. We specialize in that type of service, and we only can do that work by engaging and diverse group of depositors. This is an opportunity to do more of that. We hope that even though people are attracted by a 9% rate, and that's why they join, they become members of Express Credit Union and stick around because of the value we give them, and the work they see we do within our communities.”