Banks, not credit unions, are heavily invested in fossil fuels.
Public Policy
Super Regulator
Proportionality – Tiered
July’s OSFI discussion paper “Advancing Proportionality” introduces some important ideas which could be used in the regulation of credit unions in this province. Most significantly, the paper proposes four ‘tiers’, or categories, for Canada’s small and medium sized banks. In the paper, the 66 institutions are segmented into four sub-groups; tailoring capital and liquidity requirements […]
Democracy Debased
The May 2019 Central 1 Triennial Governance Review report has provoked too little discussion. Unfortunately, it reflects another incremental shift away from models of democratic ownership upon which the co-operative business model is based. This is another step in the effective ‘dis-mantling’ of second tier credit union entities as political agents for credit union members. […]
Brand Appropriation
The brand equity in the term ‘credit union’ is something provincial credit unions may want to protect.
Housing Strategy Debunked
Credit Union Technocracy
Technocracy is replacing democracy in our credit union world. The proud claims to consumer co-operative ownership are hollowing. The roles for member-owners and their representatives (elected directors) have narrowed. These changes have political and other implications. Our recent BC Advocacy Day delegation reflected the changing nature of our BC credit union system. Credit union executives […]
Divided Allegiance (CCUA)
The Canadian Credit Union Association (CCUA) is conflicted. It says that it champions the successful future of (a) provincial credit unions and (b) federal credit unions, but it is not that simple. Unfortunately, a federal credit union growth strategy is based upon cannibalising the provincial credit union systems. In this last year the CCUA assumed […]
Leadership Wanted
Fragile FI’s
BC credit unions have declining political leverage. Banks and credit unions are created and nurtured as political accommodations. Banks are rooted in the constituencies they serve and the political clout of those constituencies, for good or bad. This is the core premise of Fragile by Design: The Political Origins of Banking Crises and Scarce Credit, […]