Credit Unions in the News
| 1/12/10 |
ABC News: Switch to a Credit Union
Anchor Diane Sawyer reported on ABC’s World News Tonight on January 8 that many consumers are trading their financial institutions on Wall Street to the ones on Main Street.
The ABC news piece, "Switch to a Credit Union, Avoid Bank Fees," featured two consumers who switched from their big banks to smaller financial institutions. It also noted the "Move Your Money project," which was created by Arianna Huffington, owner of The Huffington Post. The project encourages consumers to take their money out of big banks and move it to smaller financial institutions such as credit unions and community banks.
"When big banks see real competition from the community banks and credit unions, they will change their behavior," Huffington told ABC's David Muir.
The project's Facebook group, "Move Your Money," has nearly 20,000 fans. The "Move Your Money" campaign on YouTube also has received more than 300,000 views.
Credit Union National Association President/CEO Dan Mica also wrote a column for The Huffington Post, saying that credit unions are experiencing record membership growth and that "disenchantment" with banks may be part of the reason. His column generated many reader comments, many of them about the positive experiences consumers have had with credit unions.
In other news, The Washington Post Thursday recommended that homeowners looking to refinance a mortgage talk to several lenders—including credit unions.
Source: Credit Union National Association, Jan. 12, 2010.
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| 12/31/09 |
CNN Tells Why Credit Unions Are Better
CNN explained some of the reasons why consumers feel as though they're "getting a better shake" by choosing credit unions over banks. "Had it with your bank this year? It's time to start fresh," said CNN, in a recent story, "Credit Unions Duke it Out With Banks." Gerri Willis, CNN personal finance editor and host of "Your Bottom Line," a show dedicated to saving money, noted that fees are lower at credit unions and rates are more attractive. Read the article>
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| 12/18/09 |
Media Recommend Joining a Credit Union
Is it time for consumers to dump their banks? That's a question the CBS Early Show posed to consumers in a highly positive Thursday story about credit unions. The story, "Credit Unions Better than Banks For You?" compared credit unions with banks, touting credit unions' benefits—including low rates, member service and the fact that credit unions are still lending, even though many banks have pulled back.
"[Consumers are] tired of all the big fees being imposed by the big banks, they're tired of the really bad customer service...so they're making the switch from the banks to the credit unions. Membership was up 11% in the third quarter," said "Early Show" financial contributor Vera Gibbons.
"If you look at the bank loan portfolios, they're actually shrinking, whereas the credit union loan portfolios are growing," she added. "What that means--is if you're a creditworthy customer you stand a better chance of getting a loan at a credit union than at a big commercial bank."
She also noted that credit unions offer higher rates on deposits and lower rates on loans, especially auto loans.
"The overall satisfaction rate is very high at credit unions," Gibbons said.
Another story by CBS Moneywatch Thursday said to "consider a credit union" as one of the "nine best strategies for borrowing in 2010." The story cited a 2009 Pew Charitable Trusts Study, which said credit union credit card interest rates are about 20% lower than banks. The Pew study has received significant attention from other media including The New York Times and The Wall Street Journal.
On Thursday, CNBC noted that consumers should check out credit unions when seeking auto loans. The story quoted Jim Hanson, Credit Union National Association vice president of personal finance. Hanson told CNBC that credit unions' rates tend to be 1% to 1.5% lower than banks'.
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