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Cooperative
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
The Cloyne Court Hotel, a student cooperative in Berkeley, California, United States.
A cooperative (also co-operative or coöperative; often referred to as a co-op or
coop) is defined by the International Co-operative Alliance's Statement on the
Co-operative Identity as an autonomous association of persons united voluntarily to
meet their common economic, social, and cultural needs and aspirations through a
jointly-owned and democratically-controlled enterprise[1]. A cooperative may also be
defined as a business owned and controlled equally by the people who use its services
or who work at it. Cooperative enterprises are the focus of study in the field of
cooperative economics.
History
Consumers' cooperative shops in the UK formed the world's first mass cooperative movement
Main article: History of the cooperative movement
Although co-operation as a form of individual and societal behavior is intrinsic to
human organization, the history of modern co-operative forms of organizing dates
back to the Agricultural and Industrial Revolutions of the 18th and 19th centuries. The
'first co-operative' is under some dispute, but there were various milestones.
In 1761, the Fenwick Weavers' Society was formed in Fenwick, East Ayrshire,
Scotland to sell discounted oatmeal to local workers. Its services expanded to include
assistance with savings and loans, emigration and education. In 1810, social reformer
Robert Owen and his partners purchased New Lanark mill from Owen's father-in-law
and proceeded to introduce better labor standards including discounted retail shops
where profits were passed on to his employees. Owen left New Lanark to pursue other
forms of co-operative organization and develop co-op ideas through writing and
lecture. Co-operative communities were set up in Glasgow, Indiana and Hampshire,
although ultimately unsuccessful. In 1828, William King set up a newspaper, The
Cooperator, to promote Owen's thinking, having already set up a co-operative store in
Brighton.
The Rochdale Society of Equitable Pioneers, founded in 1844, is usually considered
the first successful co-operative enterprise, used as a model for modern co-ops,
following the 'Rochdale Principles'. A group of 28 weavers and other artisans in
Rochdale, England set up the society to open their own store selling food items they
could not otherwise afford. Within ten years there were over 1,000 co-operative
societies in the United Kingdom.
Other events such as the founding of a friendly society by the Tolpuddle Martyrs in
1832 were key occasions in the creation of organized labor and consumer movements.
Meaning
Cooperatives as legal entities
Although the term may be used loosely to describe a way of working, a cooperative
properly so-called is a legal entity owned and democratically controlled equally by its
members. A defining point of a cooperative is that the members have a close
association with the enterprise as producers or consumers of its products or services,
or as its employees.
In some countries, there are specific forms of incorporation for co-operatives.
Cooperatives may take the form of companies limited by shares or by guarantee,
partnerships or unincorporated associations. In the USA, cooperatives are often
organized as non-capital stock corporations under state-specific cooperative laws.
However, they may also be unincorporated associations or business corporations such
as limited liability companies or partnerships; such forms are useful when the
members want to allow:
1. some members to have a greater share of the control, or
2. some investors to have a return on their capital that exceeds fixed interest,
neither of which may be allowed under local laws for cooperatives. Cooperatives
often share their earnings with the membership as dividends, which are divided
among the members according to their participation in the enterprise, such as
patronage, instead of according to the value of their capital shareholdings (as is done
by a joint stock company.)
Co-operative identity
Cooperatives are based on the values of self-help, self-responsibility, democracy and
equality. In the tradition of their founders, cooperative members believe in the ethical
values of honesty, openness, social responsibility and caring for others. Such legal
entities have a range of unique social characteristics. Membership is open, meaning
that anyone who satisfies certain non-discriminatory conditions may join. Economic
benefits are distributed proportionally according to each member's level of
participation in the cooperative, for instance by a dividend on sales or purchases,
rather than divided according to capital invested. Cooperatives may be generally
classified as either consumer cooperatives or producer cooperatives. Cooperatives
are closely related to collectives, which differ only in that profit-making or economic
stability is placed secondary to adherence to social-justice principles.
Types of cooperatives
Housing cooperative
Co-op City in New York houses 55,000 people
Main article: Housing cooperative
A housing cooperative is a legal mechanism for ownership of housing where residents
either own shares (share capital co-op) reflecting their equity in the co-operative's real
estate, or have membership and occupancy rights in a not-for-profit co-operative
(non-share capital co-op), and they underwrite their housing through paying
subscriptions or rent.
Housing cooperatives come in two basic equity structures:
In Market-rate housing cooperatives, members may sell their shares in the
cooperative whenever they like for whatever price the market will bear, much
like any other residential property. Market-rate co-ops are very common in
New York City.
Limited equity housing cooperatives, which are often used by affordable
housing developers, allow members to own some equity in their home, but
limit the sale price of their membership share to that which they paid.
Building cooperative
Main article: Building cooperative
Members of a building cooperative (in Britain known as a self-build housing
co-operative) pool resources to build housing, normally using a high proportion of
their own labour. When the building is finished, each member is the sole owner of a
homestead, and the cooperative may be dissolved.
This collective effort was at the origin of many of Britain's building societies, which
however developed into "permanent" mutual savings and loan organisations, a term
which persisted in some of their names (such as the former Leeds Permanent).
Nowadays such self-building may be financed using a step-by-step mortgage which is
released in stages as the building is completed.
The term may also refer to worker co-operatives in the building trade.
Retailers' cooperative
Main article: Retailers' cooperative
A retailers' cooperative (known as a secondary or marketing co-operative in some
countries) is an organization which employs economies of scale on behalf of its
members to get discounts from manufacturers and to pool marketing. It is common for
locally-owned grocery stores, hardware stores and pharmacies. In this case the
members of the cooperative are businesses rather than individuals.
The Best Western international hotel chain is actually a retailers' cooperative, whose
members are hotel operators, although it now prefers to call itself a "nonprofit
membership association." It gave up on the "cooperative" label after some courts
insisted on enforcing regulatory requirements for franchisors despite its
member-controlled status.
Utility cooperative
Main article: Utility cooperative
A utility cooperative is a public utility that is owned by its customers. It is a type of
consumers' cooperative. In the US, many such cooperatives were formed to provide
rural electrical and telephone service as part of the New Deal. See Rural Utilities
Service.
Worker cooperative
Main article: Worker cooperative
A worker cooperative or producer cooperative is a cooperative, that is owned and
democratically controlled by its "worker-owners". There are no outside owners in a
"pure" workers' cooperative, only the workers own shares of the business, though
hybrid forms in which consumers, community members or capitalist investors also
own some shares are not uncommon. Membership is not compulsory for employees,
but generally only employees can become members. However, in India there is a form
of workers' cooperative which insists on compulsory membership for all employees
and compulsory employment for all members. That is the form of the Indian Coffee
Houses. This system was advocated by the Indian communist leader A. K. Gopalan.
Business and employment co-operative
Main article: Business and employment co-operative
Business and employment co-operatives (BECs) are a subset of worker
co-operatives that represent a new approach to providing support to the creation of
new businesses.
Like other business creation support schemes, BECs enable budding entrepreneurs to
experiment with their business idea while benefiting from a secure income.
The innovation BECs introduce is that once the business is established the
entrepreneur is not forced to leave and set up independently, but can stay and become
a full member of the co-operative.
The micro-enterprises thus combine to form one multi-activity enterprise whose
members provide a mutually supportive environment for each other.
BECs thus provide budding business people with an easy transition from inactivity to
self-employment, but in a collective framework. They open up new horizons for
people who have ambition but who lack the skills or confidence needed to set off
entirely on their own – or who simply want to carry on an independent economic
activity but within a supportive group context.
Social cooperative
Main article: Social cooperative
A particularly successful form of multi-stakeholder cooperative is the Italian "social
cooperative", of which some 7,000 exist. "Type A" social cooperatives bring together
providers and beneficiaries of a social service as members. "Type B" social
cooperatives bring together permanent workers and previously unemployed people
who wish to integrate into the labour market.
Social cooperatives are legally defined as follows:
no more than 80% of profits may be distributed, interest is limited to the bond
rate and dissolution is altruistic (assets may not be distributed)
the cooperative has legal personality and limited liability
the objective is the general benefit of the community and the social integration
of citizens
those of type B integrate disadvantaged people into the labour market. The
categories of disadvantage they target may include physical and mental
disability, drug and alcohol addiction, developmental disorders and problems
with the law. They do not include other factors of disadvantage such as race,
sexual orientation or abuse.
type A cooperatives provide health, social or educational services
various categories of stakeholder may become members, including paid
employees, beneficiaries, volunteers (up to 50% of members), financial
investors and public institutions. In type B co-operatives at least 30% of the
members must be from the disadvantaged target groups
voting is one person one vote
A good estimate of the current size of the social cooperative sector in Italy is given by
updating the official Istituto Nazionale di Statistica (Istat) figures from the end of
2001 by an annual growth rate of 10% (assumed by the Direzione Generale per gli
Ente Cooperativi). This gives totals of 7,100 social cooperatives, with 267,000
members, 223,000 paid employees, 31,000 volunteers and 24,000 disadvantaged
people undergoing integration. Combined turnover is around 5 billion euro. The
cooperatives break into three types: 59% type A (social and health services), 33%
type B (work integration) and 8% mixed. The average size is 30 workers.
The volunteer board of a retail consumers' cooperative, such as the former Oxford, Swindon & Gloucester Co-op,
is held to account at an Annual General Meeting of members
Consumers' cooperative
Main article: Consumers' cooperative
A consumers' cooperative is a business owned by its customers. Employees can also
generally become members. Members vote on major decisions, and elect the board of
directors from amongst their own number. A well known example in the United States
is the REI (Recreational Equipment Incorporated) co-op, and in Canada: Mountain
Equipment Co-op.
The world's largest consumers' cooperative is the Co-operative Group in the United
Kingdom, which offers a variety of retail and financial services. The UK also has a
number of autonomous consumers' cooperative societies, such as the East of England
Co-operative Society and Midcounties Co-operative. In fact the Co-operative Group
is something of a hybrid, having both corporate members (mostly other consumers'
cooperatives, as a result of its origins as a wholesale society), and individual retail
consumer members.
Japan has a very large and well developed consumer cooperative movement with over
14 million members; retail co-ops alone had a combined turnover of
2.519 trillion Yen (21.184 billion US dollars [market exchange rates as of
11/15/2005]) in 2003/4. (Japanese Consumers' Co-operative Union., 2003).
Migros is the largest supermarket chain in Switzerland and keeps the cooperative
society as its form of organization. Nowadays, a large part of the Swiss population are
members of the Migros cooperative – around 2 million of Switzerland's total
population of 7,2 million[1] [2], thus making Migros a supermarket chain that is
owned by its customers.
Coop is another Swiss cooperative which operates the second largest supermarket
chain in Switzerland after Migros. In 2001, Coop merged with 11 cooperative
federations which had been its main suppliers for over 100 years. As of 2005, Coop
operates 1437 shops and employs almost 45,000 people. According to Bio Suisse, the
Swiss organic producers' association, Coop accounts for half of all the organic food
sold in Switzerland.
EURO COOP is the European Community of Consumer Cooperatives.[2]
Farmers' grain Co-op in Crowell, Texas.
Agricultural cooperative
Main article: Agricultural cooperative
Agricultural cooperatives are widespread in rural areas. In the United States, there are
both marketing and supply cooperatives (some of which are government-sponsored)
which promote and may actually distribute specific commodities. There are also
agricultural supply cooperatives, which provide inputs into the agricultural process.
In Europe, there are strong agricultural / agribusiness cooperatives, and agricultural
cooperative banks. Most emerging countries are developing agricultural cooperatives.
Where it is legal, medical marijuana is generally produced by cooperatives.
A cooperative is a form of vertical integration and is similar to an Alliance.
Cooperative banking (credit unions and cooperative savings banks)
Main articles: Cooperative banking and Credit union
The Co-operative Bank's head office, 1 Balloon Street, Manchester. The statue in front is of Robert Owen, a
pioneer in the cooperative movement.
Credit Unions provide a form of cooperative banking.
In North America, the caisse populaire movement started by Alphonse Desjardins in
Quebec, Canada pioneered credit unions. Desjardins wanted to bring desperately
needed financial protection to working people. In 1900, from his home in Lévis,
Quebec, he opened North America's first credit union, marking the beginning of the
Mouvement Desjardins.
While they have not taken root so deeply as in Ireland or the USA, credit unions are
also established in the UK. The largest are work-based, but many are now offering
services in the wider community. The Association of British Credit Unions Ltd
(ABCUL) represents the majority of British Credit Unions. British Building Societies
developed into general-purpose savings & banking institutions with "one member,
one vote" ownership and can be seen as a form of financial cooperative (although nine
'de-mutualised' into conventionally-owned banks in the 1980s & 1990s). The UK
Co-operative Group includes both an insurance provider CIS and the Co-operative
Bank, both noted for promoting ethical investment.
Other important European banking cooperatives include the Crédit Agricole in France,
Migros and Coop Bank in Switzerland and the Raiffeisen system in many Central and
Eastern European countries. The Netherlands, Spain, Italy and various European
countries also have strong cooperative banks. They play an important part in
mortgage credit and professional (i.e. farming) credit.
Cooperative banking networks, which were nationalized in Eastern Europe, work now
as real cooperative institutions. A remarkable development has taken place in Poland,
where the SKOK (Spółdzielcze Kasy Oszczędnościowo-Kredytowe) network has
grown to serve over 1 million members via 13,000 branches, and is larger than the
country’s largest conventional bank.
In Scandinavia, there is a clear distinction between mutual savings banks (Sparbank)
and true credit unions (Andelsbank).
Federal or secondary cooperatives
Main article: Co-operative Federation
In some cases, cooperative societies find it advantageous to form co-operative
federations in which all of the members are themselves cooperatives. Historically,
these have predominantly come in the form of cooperative wholesale societies, and
cooperative unions.[3] Cooperative federations are a means through which cooperative
societies can fulfill the sixth Rochdale Principle, cooperation among cooperatives,
with the ICA noting that "Co-operatives serve their members most effectively and
strengthen the co-operative movement by working together through local, national,
regional and international structures."[4]
See Also: List of Co-operative Federations
Cooperative wholesale society
Main article: Co-operative wholesale society
According to cooperative economist Charles Gide, the aim of a cooperative wholesale
society is to arrange ―bulk purchases, and, if possible, organise production.‖[3] The
best historical example of this were the English CWS and the Scottish CWS, which
were the forerunners to the modern Co-operative Group.
Cooperative Union
Main article: Co-operative union
A second common form of co-operative federation is a co-operative union, whose
objective (according to Gide) is ―to develop the spirit of solidarity among societies
and... in a word, to exercise the functions of a government whose authority, it is
needless to say, is purely moral.‖[3] Co-operatives UK and the International
Co-operative Alliance are examples of such arrangements.
Co-operative party
In some countries with a strong cooperative sector, such as the UK, cooperatives may
find it advantageous to form a parliamentary political party to represent their interests.
The British Co-operative Party and the Canadian Co-operative Commonwealth
Federation are prime examples of such arrangements.
The British cooperative movement formed the Co-operative Party in the early 20th
century to represent members of consumers' cooperatives in Parliament. The
Co-operative Party now has a permanent electoral pact with the Labour Party, and has
29 members of parliament who were elected at the 2005 general election as Labour
Co-operative MPs. UK cooperatives retain a significant market share in food retail,
insurance, banking, funeral services, and the travel industry in many parts of the
country.
Further reading
"Consumer Co-operatives in a Changing World" edited by Johann Brazda and
Robert Schediwy (ICA), 1989
Consumers' Co-operative Societies, by Charles Gide, 1922
Co-operation 1921-1947, published monthly by the Cooperative League of
America
Cooperative Peace, by James Peter Warbasse, 1950
Cooperatives: Principles and practices in the 21st century, by Kimberly A.
Zeuli and Robert Cropp, 2004
Problems Of Cooperation, by James Peter Warbasse, 1941
The History of Co-operation, by George Jacob Holyoake, 1908
"The International Co-operative Movement" by Johnston Birchall, 1997
See also
List of Co-operative Federations
List of cooperatives
Co-operative History of the Friedrich
economics cooperative Wilhelm
Collective movement Raiffeisen
common ownership Danish Participatory
commune cooperative democracy
(intentional movement Participatory
community) Industrial and economics
democratic socialism provident society Rochdale
Employee-owned microfinance / Principles
corporation microcredit social economy
Friendly Society mutual aid social enterprise
mutual
organization
mutualism
(economic
theory)
Notes
1. ^ Statement on the Co-operative Identity
2. ^ EURO COOP
3. ^ a b c Gide, Charles; as translated from French by the Co-operative Reference Library,
Dublin, "Consumers' Co-Operative Societies", Manchester: The Co-Operative Union
Limited, 1921, p. 122
4. ^ Statistical information on the Co-operative Movement
References
Japanese Consumers' Co-operative Union (2003). "co.op, 2003 Facts and Figures".
Isao Takamura (1995). "Japan: Consumer Co-op Movement in Japan".
External links
Canadian Co-operative Association
Cooperatives at the Open Directory Project
DEBUuT, Business Cooperative of the Brussels Region
International Co-operative Alliance
Venezuela's Cooperative Revolution from Dollars & Sense magazine
The National Co-operative Archive – holds records relating to all aspects of
the co-operative movement.
Building society
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
A building society is a financial institution, owned by its members, that offers
banking and other financial services, especially mortgage lending.
The term building society first arose in the 19th century, in the United Kingdom, from
co-operative savings groups: by pooling savings, usually in terminating deposits,
members could buy or build their own homes.
In the UK today building societies actively compete with banks for most banking
services, especially mortgage lending and deposit accounts. As of 2008, there are 59
building societies in the UK (listed below) with total assets exceeding £360 billion[1].
Every building society in the UK is a member of the Building Societies Association.
Origins
The original Building Society was formed in Birmingham in 1774. Most of the
original societies were fully terminating, where they would be dissolved when all
members had a house: the last of them was wound up in 1980. In the 1830s and 1840s
a new development took place with the Permanent Building Society, where the
society continued on a rolling basis, continually taking in new members as earlier
ones completed purchases, such as Leek United Building Society. The main
legislative framework for the Building Society was the Building Society Act of 1874,
with subsequent amending legislation in 1894, 1939 (see Coney Hall), and 1960.
In their heyday, there were hundreds of building societies: just about every town in
the country had a building society named after that town. Over succeeding decades
the number of societies has decreased, as various societies merged to form larger ones,
often renaming in the process, and other societies opted for demutualisation followed
by - in the great majority of cases - eventual takeover by a listed bank. Most of the
existing larger building societies are the end result of the mergers of many smaller
societies.
1980s and 1990s
In the 1980s, British banking laws were changed to allow building societies to offer
banking services equivalent to normal banks. The management of a number of
societies still felt that they were unable to compete with the banks, and a new
Building Society Act was passed in 1986 in response to their concerns. This permitted
societies to 'demutualise'. If more than 75% of members voted in favour, the building
society would then become a limited company like any other. Members' mutual rights
were exchanged for shares in this new company. A number of the larger societies
made such proposals to their members and all were accepted. Some became
independent companies quoted on the London Stock Exchange, others were acquired
by larger financial groups.
A movement arose whereby investors would open a savings account with a mutual
building society, thereby getting voting rights in the society, and pressurise for a vote
on demutualisation, with the intent of getting a windfall payment as a result. A
number of societies' members and managers were very unhappy about such investors,
who were termed carpetbaggers, maintaining that as mutual societies, they could
supply better and cheaper home loans than the banks and demutualised societies, as
they only had to make a profit to cover their operational costs, and had no need to
generate an additional profit to return to shareholders.
In the end, after a number of large demutualisations, and pressure from carpetbaggers
moving from one building society to another to cream off the windfalls, most of the
remaining societies modified their rules of membership in the late 1990s. The method
usually adopted were membership rules to ensure that anyone newly joining a society
would, for the first few years, be unable to get any profit out of a demutualisation.
With the chance of a quick profit removed, the demutualisations have slowed
considerably, as of December 2001.
One academic study (Heffernan 2003) found that demutualised societies' pricing
behaviour on deposits and mortgages was more favourable to shareholders than to
customers, with the remaining mutual building societies offering consistently better
rates. [2]
Deposits up to £35,000 with building societies are normally protected by the Financial
Services Compensation Scheme.
List of building societies in the United Kingdom that
have demutualised
Ten building societies of the United Kingdom demutualised between 1989 and 2000,
either becoming a bank or being acquired by a larger bank.[3][4] By 2008, every
building society that floated on the stock market in the wave of demutualisations of
the 1980s and 1990s has either been sold to a conventional bank, or been
nationalised.[4]
Building
Date Details Current position
Society
Abbey National 1989 Converted to Now known as "Abbey", a subsidiary of
plc Banco Santander
Cheltenham and takeover by Now part of Lloyds TSB although C&G still
1994
Gloucester Lloyds Bank have a branch network.
National & takeover by
Business merged into Abbey National, name
Provincial 1995 Abbey
no longer used
Building Society National
Remains independent but a takeover by
Alliance & Converted to
1997 Banco Santander, which also owns Abbey,
Leicester plc
has been approved by shareholders
takeover by Remains a division of Bank of Ireland but its
the savings balances and branch network were
Bristol and West 1997
Bank of transferred to the Britannia Building Society
Ireland in 2005
Now a division of Bank of Scotland plc, the
Converted to UK banking subsidiary of HBOS, which itself
Halifax 1997
plc agreed to a merger with Lloyds TSB on 18
September 2008
Nationalised in February 2008 following near
Converted to
Northern Rock 1997 bankruptcy due to the Subprime mortgage
plc
crisis
Now part of Barclays plc. Woolwich brand
Converted to name now only used for mortgages from
The Woolwich 1997
plc Barclays with the Woolwich branch network
merging with that of Barclays in 2007
Birmingham takeover by
1999 Now a division of Bank of Scotland plc
Midshires the Halifax
Bradford & Converted to Nationalisation with part sale to Abbey
2000
Bingley plc National announced 29 September 2008
List of building societies in the United Kingdom that
no longer exist
The following is an incomplete list of building societies in the United Kingdom that
no longer exist, since they either merged with or were taken over by other building
societies [5].
Name Fate Successor Year
Abbey Road Building Society and merged to form
Abbey National Building Society in 1944
National Building Society the
Bingley Permanent Building Society and merged to form Bradford & Bingley Building in 1964
Bradford Equitable Building Society the Society
changed its name
Co-operative Permanent Building Society Nationwide Building Society in 1970
to
Bedfordshire Building Society and in
merged to form Gateway Building Society
Temperance Permanent 1974[6][7]
Huddersfield & Bradford Building
Society and merged to form Yorkshire Building Society in 1982
West Yorkshire Building Society
Coventry Economic Building Society and merged to form
Coventry Building Society in 1983
Coventry Provident Building Society the
Burnley Building Society and merged to form National & Provincial Building
in 1984
Provincial Building Society the Society
Alliance Building Society and merged to form Alliance & Leicester Building
in 1985
Leicester Building Society the Society
Birmingham & Bridgwater Building
merged to form Birmingham Midshires Building
Society and in 1986
the Society
Midshires Building Society
merged to form
Anglia Building Society and Nationwide Anglia Building Society in 1987
which reverted to
Nationwide Building Society Nationwide Building Society in 1991
the
Gateway Building Society and merged to form
Woolwich Building Society in 1988
Woolwich Equitable Building Society the
Wessex Building Society and merged to form
Portman Wessex Building Society in 1989
Portman Building Society the
Regency & West of England Building
Society and merged to form Portman Building Society in 1990
Portman Wessex Building Society
Bradford & Bingley Building
Hendon Building Society was taken over by in 1991
Society
Cheltenham & Gloucester Building
Heart of England Building Society merged with the in 1993
Society
St. Pancras Building Society merged with the Portman Building Society in 1993
Leeds Permanent Building Society merged with the Halifax Building Society in 1995
Staffordshire Building Society merged with the Portman Building Society in 2003
Lambeth Building Society merged with the Portman Building Society in 2006
Mercantile Building Society merged with the Leeds Building Society in 2006
Universal Building Society merged with the Newcastle Building Society in 2006
Portman Building Society merged with the Nationwide Building Society in 2007
Remaining building societies in the United Kingdom
The remaining building societies are:
(Total group assets of building societies) Source: Building Societies Association[1]
Building societies
Name Asset share to Apr 2008 Asset share to Jan 2007
1 Nationwide Building Society £158,660m £150,586m
2 Britannia Building Society £36,827m £32,431m
3 Yorkshire Building Society £20,498m £16,298m
4 Coventry Building Society* £14,909m £11,090m
5 Chelsea Building Society £13,087m £9,656m
6 Skipton Building Society £12,531m £9,156m
7 Leeds Building Society £9,181m £7,065m
8 West Bromwich Building Society £8,319m £7,208m
9 Derbyshire Building Society** £7,094m £5,097m
10 Principality Building Society £5,853m £4,384m
11 Cheshire Building Society** £4,976m £4,678m
12 Newcastle Building Society £4,816m £3,863m
13 Norwich & Peterborough Building Society £4,308m £3,403m
14 Dunfermline Building Society £3,303m £2,318m
15 Stroud & Swindon Building Society £3,172m £2,514m
16 Nottingham Building Society £3,026m £2,428m
17 Scarborough Building Society £2,298m £1,733m
18 Kent Reliance Building Society £2,134m £1,619m
19 Progressive Building Society* £1,495m £1,248m
20 Cumberland Building Society £1,283m £1,185m
21 National Counties Building Society £1,177m £956m
22 Furness Building Society £845m £770m
23 Cambridge Building Society £844m £751m
24 Leek United Building Society £800m £661m
25 Manchester Building Society £792m £565m
26 Saffron Building Society £784m £662m
27 Hinckley & Rugby Building Society £712m £649m
28 Darlington Building Society £689m £548m
29 Newbury Building Society £605m £565m
30 Monmouthshire Building Society £527m £485m
31 Melton Mowbray Building Society* £439m £385m
32 Market Harborough Building Society £419m £380m
33 Ipswich Building Society* £403m £321m
34 Barnsley Building Society* £376m £346m
35 Marsden Building Society £356m £343m
36 Tipton & Coseley Building Society* £350m £287m
37 Hanley Economic Building Society £341m £322m
38 Mansfield Building Society* £286m £229m
39 Teachers Building Society £271m £240m
40 Loughborough Building Society* £260m £239m
41 Chesham Building Society* £254m £196m
42 Dudley Building Society £251m £228m
43 Vernon Building Society £246m £217m
44 Scottish Building Society £221m £211m
45 Bath Investment & Building Society £190m £157m
46 Chorley & District Building Society* £160m £147m
47 Harpenden Building Society* £158m £126m
48 Holmesdale Building Society* £149m £142m
49 Stafford Railway Building Society* £148m £132m
50 Beverley Building Society* £145m £117m
51 Buckinghamshire Building Society* £139m £135m
52 Swansea Building Society £120m £95m
53 Earl Shilton Building Society* £92m £88m
54 Shepshed Building Society £86m £79m
55 Penrith Building Society* £78m £74m
56 Ecology Building Society* £75m £63m
57 Catholic Building Society* *** £44m £38m
58 City of Derry Building Society* £36m £28m
59 Century Building Society* £22m £22m
* These societies do not form part of a corporate business group, although they may own other businesses.
** It has been announced that the Cheshire and Derbyshire building societies are both to merge with the
Nationwide. As the merger is expected to proceed through a board resolution, it is expected to be completed by
December 2008. Source: Building Societies Association [8].
*** It has been announced that the Catholic building society is to merge with the Chelsea. Source: Chelsea
Building Society [9].
Other countries
Australia: In Australia, building societies evolved along British lines.
Because of strict regulations on banks, building societies flourished until the
deregulation of the Australian financial industry in the 1980s. Eventually
many of the smaller building societies disappeared, while some of the largest
(such as St. George) officially attained the status of banks.
Finland: In Finland the Mortgage Society of Finland, a permanent building
society, was founded in 1860. Since 2002 mortgage loans are handled by
Suomen AsuntoHypoPankki, the licensed bank owned by the society.
Ireland: In Ireland, the three building societies are as follows; EBS Building
Society, ICS Building Society, and Irish Nationwide Building Society
Jamaica: In Jamaica, four building societies compete with commercial banks
and credits unions for most consumer financial services.
United States: In the United States, savings and loan associations have a
similar organisation and purpose.
References
Wikisource has the text of the 1911 Encyclopædia Britannica article Building
Societies.
1. ^ a b Building Societies Association
2. ^ Shelagh Heffernan. "The Effect of UK Building Society Conversion on Pricing
Behaviour (March 2003)" (pdf). Faculty of Finance, CASS Business School, City of
London. Retrieved on 2007-10-10.
3. ^ Building Society Takeovers and Flotations Building Societies Association website
(Retrieved 5 April 2007)
4. ^ a b Pollock, Ian (2008-09-29). "Not such a good idea after all?". bbc.co.uk. BBC
News. Retrieved on 2008-10-01.
5. ^ Building Society Mergers and Conversions since 1980 Building Societies
Association website (Retrieved 5 April 2007)
6. ^ http://www.bsa.org.uk/docs/consumerpdfs/yearbooknamechangepart1.pdf retrieved
2008-07-12.
7. ^ The Temperance Permanent was so-called because the directors were required to
sign the pledge, a requirement which was dropped with the merger and name-change
— to the reported dismay of some members. [The Times, Friday, Apr 25, 1975; pg. 4;
Issue 59379; col E, 'Temperance abandoned by building society'. Retrieved from
InfoTrac on July 17, 2008.]
8. ^ BSA welcomes mergers (Retrieved 8 September 2008)
9. ^ Chelsea and Catholic building societies to merge (Retrieved 13 September 2008)
See also
Cooperative banking
Mutual organisation
Mutualism
Demutualisation
Banking in the United Kingdom
External links
Building Societies Association
The History of Building Societies from the Building Societies Association
website.
Pollock, Ian (2008-09-29). "Not such a good idea after all?". bbc.co.uk. BBC
News. "'With hindsight they raised more money than they would have done
had they stayed as building societies and with the credit crunch that now looks
like a mistake,' said Adrian Coles. But John Wriglesworth argues that losing
their independence because of this was certainly not inevitable ..." – Analysis
after the last of the UK's demutualized building societies lost its independence
Charitable organization
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
The definition of charitable organization, and of charity, varies according to the
country and in some instances the region of the country in which the charitable
organization operates. The regulation, tax treatment, and the way in which charity law
affects charitable organizations also varies.
Australia
Definition of charity
The definition of charity in Australia is derived through English common law,
originally from the Charitable Uses Act 1601, and then through several centuries of
case law based upon it. In 2002, the Federal Government established an inquiry into
the definition of a charity. That inquiry proposed that the government should legislate
a definition of a charity, based on the principles developed through case law. This
resulted in the Charities Bill 2003. The Bill incorporated a number of provisions, such
as limitations on charities being involved in political campaigning, which many
charities saw as an unwelcome departure from the case law. The government then
appointed a Board of the Taxation inquiry to consult with charities on the Bill. As a
result of widespread criticism from charities, the Government decided to abandon the
Bill.
As a result, the government then introduced what became the Extension of Charitable
Purpose Act 2004. This Bill did not attempt to codify the definition of a charitable
purpose; it merely sought to clarify that certain purposes were indeed charitable,
whose charitable status had been subject to legal doubts. These purposes were:
childcare; self-help groups; closed/contemplative religious orders.[1]
Charity law
Under Australian law, there is no centralised system of government regulation or
recognition for charities. The notion of a charity touches upon several distinct areas of
the law; it is up to each individual agency to decide on what is a charity with respect
to the laws it is administering. If an entity disagrees with the decision of the agency, it
can challenge it through the Courts. It is possible for an entity to be recognised as a
charity by some agencies but not others. For example, in the early 1980s, Scientology
was recognised as a religious charity by the governments of most States and
Territories, but the Victorian taxation system refused recognition, until Scientology
successfully challenged that decision through the courts - see Church of the New
Faith for more.
The most important of the laws around charities is the registration with the Australian
Taxation Office as deductible gift recipients (DGR). This results in the people being
able to deduct donations to the charity from their income tax. However, there are also
several other areas where charity comes into play: the States regulate charitable
fundraising, to ensure only bona fide charities engage in it; ASIC charges reduced
fees for companies established for a charitable purpose; charities can avail themselves
of exceptions to the company naming provisions under the Corporations Act; trusts
for charitable purposes can escape the rule against perpetuities in trust law.
England and Wales
Definition of charitable organization
A charity, or charitable organization, in England and Wales is a particular type of
voluntary organization.[2] A voluntary organization is an organization set up for
charitable, social, philanthropic or other purposes.[3] It is required to use any profit or
surplus only for the organization's purposes, and it is not a part of any governing
department, local authority or other statutory body.[4] All charities are voluntary
organizations, but not all voluntary organizations in England and Wales are charities.
For a voluntary organization to be a charitable organization or charity, its overall
goals, sometimes called the ―purposes‖ of the organization, must be charitable. All the
purposes of the organization must be charitable, as a charity cannot have some
purposes which are charitable and some which are not.[5] The Charities Act 2006
provides the following list of charitable purposes. [6]
1. the prevention or relief of poverty
2. the advancement of education
3. the advancement of religion
4. the advancement of health or the saving of lives
5. the advancement of citizenship or community development
6. the advancement of the arts, culture, heritage or science
7. the advancement of amateur sport
8. the advancement of human rights, conflict resolution or reconciliation or the promotion of
religious or racial harmony or equality and diversity
9. the advancement of environmental protection or improvement
10. the relief of those in need, by reason of youth, age, ill-health, disability, financial hardship
or other disadvantage
11. the advancement of animal welfare
12. the promotion of the efficiency of the armed forces of the Crown or of the police, fire and
rescue services or ambulance services
13. other purposes currently recognised as charitable and any new charitable purposes which
are similar to another charitable purpose.
A charity must also provide a public benefit.[7]
Before the Charities Act 2006 the definition of charity arose from a list of charitable
purposes in the Charitable Uses Act 1601 (also known as the Statute of Elizabeth),
which had been interpreted and expanded into a considerable body of case law. In
Commissioners for Special Purposes of Income Tax v Pemsel (1891), Lord
McNaughten identified four categories of charity which could be extracted from the
Charitable Uses Act and which were the accepted definition of charity prior to the
Charities Act 2006.
1. the relief of poverty,
2. the advancement of education,
3. the advancement of religion, and
4. other purposes considered beneficial to the community.
Governing document and trustees
The governing document of a charity means the document that sets out the charity's
purposes and usually, how it is to be administered. Depending on the legal structure of
the charity, this document may be a constitution, a trust deed, a memorandum and
articles of association, or some other formal document. The charity trustees are the
people who, as specified in the charity's governing document, are responsible for the
general control and management of the charity. In the charity's governing document
they may be called trustees, managing trustees, committee members, governors, or
directors, or they may be referred to by some other title.[8]
Charitable organization structure
In 2008 there are three types of legal structure for a charity in England and Wales.
1. Unincorporated association
2. Trust
3. Company limited by guarantee
The unincorporated association is the most common form of organization within the
voluntary sector in England and Wales.[9] An unincorporated association is essentially
a contractual arrangement between individuals who have agreed to come together to
form an organization for a particular purpose. An unincorporated association will
normally have as its governing document, a constitution or set of rules, which will
deal with such matters as the appointment of office bearers, and the rules governing
membership. The organization is not though a separate legal entity. So it cannot start
legal action, it cannot borrow money, and it cannot enter into contracts in its own
name. Also the officers can be personally liable if the charity is sued or has debts.[10]
A Trust is essentially a relationship between three parties, the donor of some assets,
the trustees who hold the assets and the beneficiaries (those people who are eligible to
benefit from the charity). When the trust has charitable purposes, and is a charity, the
trust is known as a charitable trust. The governing document is the Trust Deed or
Declaration of Trust, which comes into operation once it is signed by all the trustees.
The main disadvantage of a trust is that, as with an unincorporated association, it does
not have a separate legal entity and the trustees must themselves own property and
enter into contracts. The trustees are also liable if the charity is sued or incurs liability.
A company limited by guarantee is a private limited company where the liability of
members is limited. A guarantee company does not have a share capital, but instead
has members who are guarantors instead of shareholders. In the event of the company
being wound up the members agree to pay a nominal sum which can be as little as £1.
A company limited by guarantee is a useful structure for a charity where it is desirable
for the Trustees to have the protection of limited liability. Also, the charity has a clear
legal identity, and so can enter into contracts, such as employment contracts in its own
name.[11]
The Charities Act 2006 introduced a new legal form of incorporation designed
specifically for charities, the Charitable Incorporated Organisation. This is not yet
available for charities to use.[12]
The word Foundation is not generally used in England and Wales. Occasionally a
charity will use the word Foundation as part of its name e.g. British Heart Foundation,
but this has no legal significance and does not provide any information about either
the work of the charity or how it is legally structured. The structure of the
organization will be one of the three types of structure described above.
Charity registration
Charitable organizations who have an income of more than £5,000, and for whom the
law of England and Wales applies, must register with the Charity Commission for
England and Wales. For companies, the law of England and Wales will normally
apply if the company itself is registered in England and Wales. In other cases if the
governing document does not make it clear, the law which applies will be the country
with which the organization is most connected.[13]
Some charities which are called exempt charities are not required to register with the
Charity Commission and are not subject to any of the Charity Commission's
supervisory powers. These charities include most universities and national museums
and some other educational institutions. Other charities are excepted from the need to
register, but are still subject to the supervision of the Charity Commission. The
regulations on excepted charities have however been changed by the Charities Act
2006. Many excepted charities are religious charities.[14]
Northern Ireland
The 5,000 or so charities in Northern Ireland are registered with the Inland Revenue.
There is no central register or regulatory body for these charities, but this situation is
currently under discussion.
Scotland
The 20,000 or so charities in Scotland are registered with the Office of the Scottish
Charity Regulator (OSCR), which also publishes a Register of charities online.
United States
In the United States a charitable organization is an organization that is organized and
operated for purposes that are beneficial to the public interest. [15] The requirements
and procedures for forming charitable organizations vary from state to state. So also
do the registration and filing requirements for charitable organisations that conduct
charitable activities or solicit charitable contributions. [16] So effectively in practice
the detailed definition of charitable organization is determined by the requirements of
state law of the state in which the charitable organization operates, and the
requirements for federal tax relief set by the IRS.
Federal Tax Relief
Federal tax law provides tax benefits to non profit organizations recognized as exempt
from federal income tax under section 501(c)(3) of the Internal Revenue Code (IRC).
The benefits of 501(c)(3) status include exemption from federal income tax as well as
eligibility to receive tax deductible charitable contributions. To qualify for 501(c)(3)
status most organizations must apply to the Internal Revenue Service (IRS) for such
status. [17].
There are several requirements that must be met for a charitable organization to obtain
501(c)(3) status. These include the organization being organized as a corporation,
trust, or unincorporated association, and the organization’s organizing document
(such as the articles of incorporation, trust documents, or articles of association) must
limit its purposes to being charitable, and permanently dedicate its assets to charitable
purposes. The organization must refrain from undertaking a number of other activities
such as participating in the political campaigns of candidates for local, state or federal
office, and must ensure that its earnings do not benefit any individual. [18]
The types of charitable organization that are considered by the IRS to be organized for
the public benefit include those that are organized for:
1. Relief of the poor, the distressed, or the underprivileged,
2. Advancement of religion,
3. Advancement of education or science,
4. Erection or maintenance of public buildings, monuments, or works,
5. Lessening the burdens of government,
6. Lessening of neighborhood tensions,
7. Elimination of prejudice and discrimination,
8. Defense of human and civil rights secured by law, and
9. Combating community deterioration and juvenile delinquency.
A number of other organizations, including those organized for religious, scientific,
literary and educational purposes, as well as those for testing for public safety and for
fostering national or international amateur sports competition, and for the prevention
of cruelty to children or animals, may also qualify for exempt status.
The IRS, except in rare circumstances, refers to all organizations qualifying for
exemption under 501(c)(3) as charities.[19]
List of relevant organizations
Charity regulating bodies
Australian Taxation Office
Canada Revenue Agency
Inland Revenue Department (Hong Kong)
Public Trustee (Ontario)
Charity Commission for England and Wales
Office of the Scottish Charity Regulator
United States Internal Revenue Service (also confirm a US charity is real)
Evaluations of charities
United States
American Institute of Philanthropy
BBB Wise Giving Alliance
Charity Navigator
GuideStar
GiveWell: Real Change for Your Dollar
The Catalogue For Philanthropy
United Kingdom
GuideStar UK comprehensive information on charities
Intelligent Giving transparency ratings of all types of UK charity
New Philanthropy Capital provides recommendation reports on charities
Raise Magazine provides details and video coverage of charities' work
See also
Algemeen nut beogende instelling - "institution for general benefit" according to Dutch
tax administration
America's Charities
Car donation
Charitable trust
Cy pres doctrine
Foundation
Fraternal and service organizations
Grants
Grant writing
List of environmental organizations
List of voluntary welfare organisations in Singapore
List of welfare organizations
Non-profit organization
Occupational safety and health
Philanthropy
Program evaluation
Social enterprise
References
1. ^ Extension of Charitable Purpose Bill 2004 (Bills Digest, no. 164, 2003-04)
2. ^ "Charity Facts". Retrieved on 2008-08-18.
3. ^ "Institute of Fundraising What is a charity or voluntary organization". Retrieved on
2008-08-18.
4. ^ "NCVO Voluntary organization definition". Retrieved on 2008-08-23.
5. ^ "Charity Commission for England and Wales". Retrieved on 2008-08-20.
6. ^ "Charities Act 2006". Retrieved on 2008-08-20.
7. ^ "Charities and Public Benefit". Retrieved on 2008-08-20.
8. ^ "Choosing and Preparing a Governing Document". Retrieved on 2008-08-24.
9. ^ "Seniors Network - Unincorporated Association". Retrieved on 2008-08-24.
10. ^ "NCVO - Legal structures for voluntary organisations". Retrieved on 2008-08-24.
11. ^ "Guarantee Company - Not for Profit Companies - Charities". Retrieved on
2008-08-24.
12. ^ "Charitable Incorporated Organisation (CIO)". Retrieved on 2008-08-21.
13. ^ "Registering as a Charity". Retrieved on 2008-08-21.
14. ^ "Charity Act 2006". Retrieved on 2008-08-21.
15. ^ "IRS document P557". Retrieved on 2008-08-27.
16. ^ "NASCO National Association of State Charity Officials". Retrieved on
2008-08-27.
17. ^ "IRS document P4220". Retrieved on 2008-08-27.
18. ^ "IRS document P557". Retrieved on 2008-08-27.
19. ^ Governing Nonprofit Organizations, Marion R. Fremont-Smith, Harvard University
Press,2004.
Topics related to charity
Philanthropy • Alms • Tzedakah • Zakat • Altruism • Gift • Donation •
Main topics Alternative giving • Youth philanthropy • Volunteer • Charitable
contribution • Noblesse oblige
Non-governmental organization • Registered charity, Charitable trust •
Organization types Foundation • Private foundation • Non-profit organization •
Not-for-profit corporation • Charitable organization
Charity Navigator • Network for Good • Charity badge • List of
Additional topics charitable foundations • Click-to-donate sites • Pushka • Halukka •
Meshulach
Social firm
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
A Social Firm is a business created for the employment of people who have a
disability or are otherwise disadvantaged in the labour market. The commercial and
production activities are undertaken in the context of a social mission, with profits
going back into the company to further its goals. A significant number of the
employees of Social Firms will be people with a disability or disadvantage, including
psychiatric disabilities. The firms grew out of disillusionment with mainstream
businesses, and the failure to recognise or enable everyone's potential. All workers are
paid a market-rate wage or salary that is appropriate to the work. All employees are
intended to have the same employment opportunities, rights and obligations.
For more information about Social Firms see the website of Social Firms UK, the
UK's national support agency encouraging the development of Social Firms: Social
Firms UK In recognition of the growing interest in Social Firm development in
countries all over the world now, Social Firms UK launched the International Social
Firms Alliance (ISFA) in March 2007. ISFA is an online area where people and
organisations can meet virtually to discuss common interests and share good practice.
For more information visit ISFA
Social Firms Australia (SoFA) is a not- for- profit organisation developing social
firms in Australia. SoFA is committed to improving the quality of life as well as the
social and economic integration of Australians living with a psychiatric disability. For
more information visit Social Firms Australia
History
The original social firms were established in the 1980s. Firms in Europe started to
prosper and employ increasing numbers of people with a disability. Schemes, and
coordinating organisations, became more established and numerous in the 1990s.
See also
Social enterprise
Disability rights
Social Inclusion
Social model of disability
Psychiatric rehabilitation
Recovery model
Social Psychiatry
ELWARE
RepaNet
External links
Social Firms UK
International Social Firms Alliance
European Confederation of social firms and co-operatives (CEFEC)
Social Firms Australia
This business-related article is a stub. You can help by expanding it.
This disability-related article is a stub. You can help Wikipedia by expanding it.
Housing association
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Jump to: navigation, search
Not to be confused with homeowners association.
Housing associations in the United Kingdom are independent not-for-profit bodies
that provide low-cost "social housing" for people in housing need. Any trading
surplus is used to maintain existing homes and to help finance new ones. They are
now the United Kingdom's major providers of new homes for rent, while many also
run shared ownership schemes to help people who cannot afford to buy their own
homes outright.
Housing associations provide a wide range of housing, some managing large estates
of housing for families, while the smallest may perhaps manage a single scheme of
housing for older people. Much of the supported accommodation in the UK is also
provided by Housing Associations, with specialist projects for people with mental
health or learning disabilities, with substance misuse problems (drugs or alcohol), the
formerly homeless, young people, ex-offenders and women fleeing domestic violence.
Funding and regulation
Housing associations are funded and regulated by a variety of organisations,
depending on where they are based.
In England, housing associations are funded and regulated by the Housing
Corporation, a non-departmental public body or quango that reports to the
Department for Communities and Local Government.
In Northern Ireland, the same role is carried out by the Northern Ireland
Housing Executive.
In Scotland, this function is fulfilled by Communities Scotland, an executive
agency of the Scottish Executive Development Department.
In Wales, the regulation and funding of housing associations is carried out by
the Welsh Assembly.
Registered Social Landlord (RSL) is the technical name for social landlords that are
registered with the Housing Corporation - most are housing associations, but there are
also trusts, co-operatives and companies.
Since 2003, in an effort to seek greater value for money, much of the funding by the
Housing Corporation for new house building has been channelled to fewer than 80
"developing housing associations" that have achieved "partner status" through Partner
Programme Agreements.
Legally housing associations are often Industrial and Provident societies, and may or
may not be registered charities.
There are four industry bodies representing housing associations working in the UK,
each covering a respective home nation. They are:
England - National Housing Federation (NHF)
Scotland - Scottish Federation of Housing Associations (SFHA)
Wales - Community Housing Cymru (CHC)
Northern Ireland - Northern Ireland Federation of Housing Associations
(NIFHA)
The NHF (formerly the National Federation of Housing Associations) claimed that at
the start of 2003 they had around 1400 non-profit housing organisations in their
membership, owning or managing approximately 1.8 million homes across England.
Management
A feature of Housing Associations is that, although the larger Housing Associations
usually have paid staff, a committee or board of management made up of volunteers
has overall responsibility for the work of the organisation. A board might include
residents, representatives from local authorities and community groups, business
people and politicians. There are more than 30,000 voluntary board members running
housing associations throughout England.
History
They first appeared in the second half of the nineteenth century as part of the growth
in philanthropic and voluntary organisations brought about by the growth of the
middle classes in the wake of the Industrial Revolution.
Housing associations increased in importance over the last decades of the twentieth
century due to changes to council housing brought in by the Thatcher government,
when rules were introduced that prevented councils subsidising their housing from
local taxes, channeled grants for construction of new Social housing to Housing
Associations and allowed Council tenants to buy their homes at a large discount. This,
combined with cost-cutting initiatives in local government and a housing benefit
scheme that was more generous to housing associations than local authorities, led to
many councils transferring their housing stock to housing associations. These
organisations are often referred to as Large Scale Voluntary Transfer organisations or
Local Housing Companies.
See also
EcoHomes
Hornsey Housing Trust
Leeds Federated Housing Association
Granby House (Youlgrave & District) Society Ltd
External links
The external links in this article may not follow Wikipedia's content policies or
guidelines.
Please improve this article by removing excessive or inappropriate external links.
National Housing Federation (covers England only)
Scottish Federation of Housing Associations
Community Housing Cymru
Northern Ireland Federation of Housing Associations
The Housing Corporation
Housingnet
London and Quadrant Housing Group
Metropolitan Housing Partnership
Nottinghill Housing Association
Servite Houses
Social Housing Law Association
Chartered Institute of Housing
THCH
Places for People
Granby House
List of UK Housing Associations
Development trust
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Jump to: navigation, search
Development trusts are organisations which operate in the United Kingdom that are:
community based, owned and led
engaged in the economic, environmental and social regeneration of a defined
area or community
independent but seek to work in partnership with other private, voluntary and
public sector organisations
self-sufficient or aiming for self sufficiency, and not for private profit.
There is no set form of legal structure, and a development trust may be registered as a
company limited by guarantee, a community interest company or an industrial and
provident society. Many register as charities.
The activities undertaken by development trusts are various and include:
running the local shop and post office
developing play park and recreational facilities
managing a housing development
developing renewable energy projects such as wind farms
setting up training programmes.
They are informed by a belief that community regeneration which is achieved through
community owned enterprise is the way to build strong and sustainable communities.
There are over 500 development trusts throughout the UK, co-ordinated by the
Development Trusts Association (DTA). The mission of the DTA, which was
established in 1993, is ―to bring about a successful development trust in every
community that wants one‖.
Development trust examples
Arts Factory Ltd. Rhondda, Wales
Coin Street Community Builders London, England
Goodwin Development Trust, Hull, England
Manor & Castle Development Trust Sheffield, England
Mull & Iona Community Trust Argyll, Scotland
See also
Local People Leading
External links
DTA
DTA Scotland
DTA Wales
Credit union
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
A credit union is a cooperative financial institution that is owned and controlled by
its members, and operated for the purpose of promoting thrift, providing credit at
reasonable rates, and providing other financial services to its members.[1] Many credit
unions exist to further community development[2] or sustainable international
development on a local level.[3] Worldwide, credit union systems vary significantly in
terms of total system assets and average institution asset size[4] since credit unions
exist in a wide range of sizes, ranging from volunteer operations with a handful of
members to institutions with several billion dollars in assets and hundreds of
thousands of members. Credit unions nonetheless remain typically smaller than banks
with, for example, the average U.S. credit union having $93 million in assets versus
$1.53 billion in assets for the average U.S. bank, as of 2007.[5].
The World Council of Credit Unions (WOCCU) defines credit unions as
"not-for-profit cooperative institutions."[6] In practice however, legal arrangements
vary by jurisdiction. For example in Canada credit unions are regulated as for-profit
institutions, and view their mandate as earning a reasonable profit to enhance services
to members and ensure stable growth.[7] This difference in viewpoints reflects credit
unions' unusual organizational structure, which attempts to solve the principal-agent
problem by ensuring that the owners and the users of the institution are the same
people. In any case, credit unions generally cannot accept donations and must be able
to prosper in a competitive market economy.
Credit unions differ from banks and other financial institutions in that the members
who have accounts in the credit union are the owners of the credit union[8] and they
elect their board of directors in a democratic one person-one vote system regardless of
the amount of money invested in the credit union.[9] A credit union's policies
governing interest rates and other matters are set by a volunteer Board of Directors
elected by and from the membership itself.[10] Credit unions offer many of the same
financial services as banks, often using a different terminology; common services
include: share accounts (savings accounts), share draft (checking) accounts, credit
cards, share term certificates (certificates of deposit), and online banking.[11] Normally,
only a member of a credit union may deposit money with the credit union, or borrow
money from it.[12] As such, credit unions have historically marketed themselves as
providing superior member service and being committed to helping members improve
their financial health. In the microfinance context, "[c]redit unions provide a broader
range of loan and savings products at a much cheaper cost [to their members] than do
most microfinance institutions."[13]
Credit unions are sometimes called by other names depending upon where the credit
union is located; for example, credit unions are called "Savings and Credit
Cooperative Organizations" ("SACCOs") in many African countries "to emphasize
savings before credit."[14] Credit unions are often called "cooperativas de ahorro y
crédito" in Spanish-speaking countries,[15] but in Mexico a credit union is typically
called a "caja popular."[16] French terms for "credit union" include "caisse
populaire"[17] and "banque populaire."[18] Afghani credit unions are called "Islamic
investment and finance cooperatives" (IIFCs) to comply with Islamic lending
practices."[19]
Global dispersion
Based on data from the World Council of Credit Unions, at the end of 2006 there
were 46,377 credit unions in 97 countries around the world. Collectively they served
172 million retail members and oversaw US $1.1 trillion in assets.[20] Note that the
World Council does not include data from co-operative banks, so that, for example,
some nations generally seen as the pioneers of credit unionism, such as Germany,
France, Holland and Italy, are not included in their data. The European Association of
Co-operative Banks reported 34 million members in those four countries at the end of
2005.[21]
The nations with the most credit union activity are highly diverse. According to the
World Council, nations with the greatest number of credit union members included
the United States (87 million), India (20 million), Canada (11 million), South Korea
(4.7 million), Japan (3.6 million), Mexico (3.6 million), Australia (3.5 million), Kenya
(3.3 million), Ireland (3.0 million), Thailand and Brazil (2.6 million each). Countries
with the highest percentage of members in the economically active population were
Dominica (147% [numbers higher than 100% are possible because the average person
is a member of more than one credit union]), Ireland (110%), Barbados (72%),
Trinidad & Tobago (57%), Canada (48%), the United States (43%), Benin (27%),
Australia (26%), Senegal and Mali (19% each).
History
Main article: credit union history
Modern credit union history dates to 1852, when Franz Hermann Schulze-Delitzsch
consolidated the learning from two pilot projects, one in Eilenburg and the other in
Delitzsch in Germany into what are generally recognized as the first credit unions in
the world. He went on to develop a highly successful urban credit union system.[22]
F.W. Raiffeisen
In 1864 Friedrich Wilhelm Raiffeisen founded the first rural credit union in
Heddesdorf (now part of Neuwied) in Germany.[23] Although Schulze-Delitzsch can
claim chronological precedence, Raiffeisen is often viewed as more important today.
Rural communities in Germany faced a far more severe shortage of financial
institutions than the cities. They were viewed as unbankable because of very small,
seasonal flows of cash and very limited human resources. The organizational methods
Raiffeisen refined there, which levered what is today called social capital, have
become a hallmark of the global credit union identity.
By the time of Raiffeisen's death in 1888 credit unions had spread to Italy, France, the
Netherlands, England and Austria, among other nations. The Raiffeisen name is still
used by Raiffeisenbank, the largest banking group in Austria (with subsidiaries
throughout Central and Eastern Europe), Rabobank (Netherlands) and
similarly-named agricultural credit unions in Germany.
The first credit union in North America, the Caisse populaire de Lévis in Quebec,
Canada, began operations on Jan. 23rd, 1901 with a ten cent deposit. Founder
Alphonse Desjardins, a reporter in the Canadian parliament, was moved to take up his
mission in 1897 when he learned of a Montrealer who had been ordered by the court
to pay nearly $5,000 in interest on a loan of $150 from a moneylender. Drawing
extensively on European precedents, Desjardins developed a unique parish-based
model for Quebec: the caisse populaire.
In the United States, St. Mary's Bank Credit Union of Manchester, New Hampshire
holds the distinction as the first credit union. Assisted by a personal visit from
Desjardins, St. Mary's was founded by French-speaking immigrants to Manchester
from Quebec on November 24, 1908. America's Credit Union Museum now occupies
the location of the home from which St. Mary's Bank Credit Union first operated.
Pierre Jay, then Massachusetts Commissioner of Banks and Edward Filene, a
Bostonian merchant, were central in establishing enabling legislation in
Massachusetts in 1909. The Woman's Educational and Industrial Union, credited with
many social service initiatives, heard of this cooperative financial model and wrote to
DesJardins. He provided them with the data they needed and on November 23, 1910,
the first non-faith-based or community credit union, established for all people in the
greater Boston community, Industrial Credit Union, was chartered.
Filene also created the Credit Union National Extension Bureau, the forerunner of the
Credit Union National Association, which was formed as a confederation of state
leagues at a meeting in Estes Park, Colorado in 1934. Attendees at the meeting
included Dora Maxwell who would go on to help establish hundreds of credit unions
and programs for the poor and Louise McCarren Herring, whose work to form credit
unions and ensure their safe operation earned the title of ―Mother of Credit Unions‖ in
the United States.
In the same year, Congress passed the Federal Credit Union Act, which permitted
credit unions to be organized anywhere in the United States. The legislation allowed
credit unions to incorporate under either state or federal law, a system of dual
chartering that persists today.
Not-for-profit status and the need for a surplus
In the credit union context, the term "not-for-profit" should not be confused with
"non-profit" charities or similar organizations.[24] Credit unions are "not-for-profit"
because they operate to serve their members rather than to maximize profits.[25] Credit
unions are not charities or similar organizations that rely on donations; to the contrary,
credit unions are financial institutions that must turn what is, in economic terms, a
small profit (i.e. "surplus") to be able to continue to serve their members.[26]
According to WOCCU, a credit union's revenues (from loans and investments) do
need to exceed its operating expenses and dividends (interest paid on deposits) in
order to maintain capital and solvency[27] and "credit unions use excess earnings to
offer members more affordable loans, a higher return on savings, lower fees or new
products and services."[28]
Usually it is easier for a person to obtain a credit card or a loan from a credit union of
which he is member than from a bank. This is especially true for people who have no
credit or whose credit has been hampered. The fact that a credit union makes surplus
also helps such people build credit or re-establish it. Credit unions are a good way of
securing a credit card in order to build your history.[29]
Corporate credit unions
The majority of credit unions are known as natural-person credit unions, and provide
service to individual consumers. Corporate credit unions (also known as central
credit unions in Canada) also exist, but instead serve the needs of credit unions with
operational support, funds clearing tasks as well as product and service delivery. In
effect, they serve as a credit union's credit union. The largest corporate credit union in
the United States is U.S. Central Credit Union of Lenexa, Kansas, which serves as a
central clearing house for corporate credit unions and holds approximately $49.1
billion in assets.[30] The two largest corporate credit unions that serve only
natural-person credit unions are Western Corporate Federal Credit Union (WesCorp)
in San Dimas, California and Southwest Corporate Federal Credit Union in Plano,
Texas.
Credit union leagues and associations
The World Council of Credit Unions is both a trade association for credit unions
worldwide and a development agency.[31] WOCCU's mission is to "assist its members
and potential members to organize, expand, improve and integrate credit unions and
related institutions as effective instruments for the economic and social development
of all people."[32]
Credit unions in the United States have traditionally employed a state/national trade
association relationship that aligns credit unions with state ―Credit Union Leagues‖
followed by national affiliation with the Credit Union National Association (CUNA)
of Madison, Wisconsin. Federal credit unions may also be members of the National
Association of Federal Credit Unions (NAFCU).
The Credit Union Executives Society (CUES), based in Madison, Wisconsin,
provides professional development and resources to thousands of credit union
executives and directors worldwide. It partners with world-renowned universities to
offer graduate-level executive education specifically for credit union leaders.
The biggest UK credit union trade association is the Association of British Credit
Unions Limited, more commonly known as Association of British Credit Unions,
ABCUL. Some Scottish credit unions are represented by the much smaller Scottish
League of Credit Unions (SLCU) which has headquarters in Glasgow; however the
overall majority of credit unions choose the main British Association.
Credit Union Central of Canada is the trade association for Canada's credit unions
outside Quebec. The Desjardins Group represents Quebec's credit unions. Structurally,
it blends the functions of a trade association and a more European-style cooperative
bank.
Credit Unions often form cooperatives among themselves to provide services to
members. A Credit Union Service Organization (CUSO) is generally a for-profit
subsidiary of one or more credit unions formed for this purpose. For example, CO-OP
Financial Services, the largest credit union owned interbank network in the US,
provides an ATM network and shared branching services to credit unions. Other
examples of cooperatives among credit unions include credit counseling services as
well as insurance and investment services.
United Kingdom
In the United Kingdom credit unions are regulated by the Financial Services
Authority, or FSA. UK credit unions are classified under two types: type 1 are the
smaller CUs while type 2 are larger. From November 2006 many type 2 CUs began
offering their members debit card accounts which enabled CU members to obtain
funds from any Link ATM. UK credit unions do not offer cheques as these are
generally being phased out in UK financial transactions.
Credit unions in the UK now offer a wide range of services to their members; from
direct debits to payroll deductions, from being able to send standing orders from their
accounts to paying members bills to providing cheaper insurance facilities.
In the U.K. one of the benefits of joining a credit union is the life insurance CU's
provide their members free of charge. Also, if a member were to die then their loan
value is wiped out with no further charge to the member's account or their family;
further, in many cases their savings with the CU are doubled and passed to the next of
kin. As recent history has shown, with the Christmas 'savings club' Farepak going bust
in 2006 (very unfortunately un-regulated, and not protected by UK law) and hundreds
of Farepak customers losing all their savings, the real alternative of a regulated and
protected CU is a able to provide both good savings rates and very affordable loans, in
the safe knowledge that all CU customers savings are protected, if the worst happens.
Currently there is a government financial initiative mainly being operated by credit
unions to bring financial services to the economically disadvantaged members of
society. One aim is to significantly reduce the influence of door step lenders (and
illegal "loan sharks") where a £300 loan over 30 weeks may involve paying back
around £450; a credit union loan would typically require paying back around £325.
Canada
Credit unions are called caisses populaires in French-speaking communities of Canada. This one is located in
Shediac, New Brunswick.
Canada has the highest per capita use of credit unions in North America, with more
than a third of the population enrolled in one. (ref: World Council of Credit Unions)
They are concentrated in Quebec, where they are known as caisses populaires
(people's banks), and in the Western provinces. As of Dec. 31 2006 there were 549
member caisses and 5.8 million retail members in the Caisses Populaires Desjardins
federation. According to data from Credit Union Central of Canada on the same date
there were 10.8 million retail members controlling CAD $193 billion in assets across
all of Canada. Aside from Desjardins, other major Canadian credit unions include
Vancity, Coast Capital Savings, and Credit Union Atlantic.
United States
In the United States, credit unions have 86 million members, which is 43.47% of the
economically active population.[33] U.S. credit unions are not-for-profit, cooperative,
tax-exempt organizations.[34]
U.S. credit unions can be chartered by either the federal government ("federal credit
unions")[35] or by a state.[36] All federal credit unions and 95% of state-chartered credit
unions have federal deposit insurance (called "share insurance") through the National
Credit Union Share Insurance Fund of at least $250,000 per member.[37][38] This
federal deposit insurance is backed by the full faith and credit of the United States
government and is administered by the National Credit Union Administration.[39] As
of December 2006, the National Credit Union Share Insurance Fund had a higher
insurance fund capital ratio than the FDIC Bank Insurance Fund.[40] U.S. credit unions
also typically have higher equity capital ratios than U.S. banks.[41]
As of the end of 2007, the National Credit Union Share Insurance Fund insured more
than $560 billion in deposits at 8,101 not-for-profit cooperative US credit unions.[42]
For comparison, the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation insured more than $4,000
billion in deposits at 8,560 banks and thrift institutions.[43] The NCUA and the FDIC
are both independent federal agencies backed by the full faith and credit of the US
government.
United States credit unions typically pay higher dividend (interest) rates on shares
(deposits) and charge lower interest on loans than banks.[44] Credit unions therefore
often have a higher cost of assets (i.e. interest expense as a percentage of average
assets) than commercial banks, with aggregate U.S. credit union cost of assets being
higher than the aggregate U.S. bank cost of assets in eight of the thirteen years
between 1995 and 2007.[45] Credit union revenues (from loans and investments) do,
however, need to exceed operating expenses and dividends (interest paid on deposits)
in order to maintain capital and solvency.
Federal credit unions may apply to the National Credit Union Administration for
Low-Income Credit Union or LICU status. To qualify for LICU status, the majority of
the credit union's membership meet specific requirements in order to be considered
"low-income". This LICU status allows the credit unions to benefit from certain
NCUA programs to enhance its capacity to serve underserved populations who may
otherwise lack access to credit or other financial services. In addition, some state
regulators also provide for similar low-income designations.
Unlike banks, which were caught redlining underserved areas in the 1970s, credit
unions are not subject to federal "community reinvestment" requirements—essentially
because credit unions, by their nature and mission of "people helping people," already
meet the financial needs of a broad spectrum of people that fall within their fields of
membership, and play an active role in community development and growth. Because
of that, credit unions have successfully lobbied to exempt themselves from the (U.S.
federal) Community Reinvestment Act, the law that forces banks to provide services
in low-income areas.
2006 Home Mortgage Disclosure Act data shows that U.S. credit unions approved
69% of low- and moderate-income borrowers' mortgage applications that they
received, versus a 47% low/mod-income borrower approval rate for other U.S.
mortgage lenders, and also that U.S. credit unions approved 62% of minority
members' mortgage applications, versus a 51% minority approval rate for other U.S.
mortgage lenders.[46] The 2006 Home Mortgage Disclosure Act data also shows that
25.2% of all U.S. credit union mortgage originations were mortgages for low- or
moderate-income borrowers, versus a 20.6% low- or moderate-income borrower
mortgage origination percentage for other U.S. mortgage lenders.[47] The National
Credit Union Administration, however, has long discouraged U.S. credit unions from
giving members loans that they may not be able to afford to repay and has forbidden
other types of predatory lending and abusive credit practices.[48] Federal credit unions
are also forbidden from charging prepayment penalties on loans.[49]
Membership restrictions
U.S. governmental regulatory agencies require that credit unions restrict their
membership to defined segments of the population, such as people who live, work,
worship, or attend school in a well-defined geographic area; employees of specific
companies or trades; members of specific non-profit groups (alumni associations,
conservation or other advocacy organizations, lodges, churches, or the like); or a
particular occupational group (teachers, doctors, etc.).[50] In the U.S., this is referred to
as a credit union's "field of membership." Internationally it is referred to as the
'common bond' or 'bond of association'.
Mergers of smaller credit unions with disparate membership bases often result in a
credit union with a wide variety of ways to qualify to join; thus, a credit union may
have a much broader "field of membership" than that credit union's name would
imply.
Credit unions generally follow the principle of "once a member, always a member,"
which allows current credit union membership to continue even if the individual
would no longer qualify to be a member (such as having changed professions or
moved outside the area). However, many credit unions reserve the right of expulsion
against a member who causes a financial loss.[1] Some credit unions also have
expelled members, including elected Board and Supervisory Committee volunteers,
for making "whistleblower" complaints against credit union management.[2][3] [4]
If a member voluntarily terminates their membership, they may or may not be eligible
to rejoin, depending on the credit union's policies and government regulations.
Credit unions may typically be chartered to serve a specific employee or associational
group or groups (often called a Select Employee Group or "SEG Charter"), all
members of a trade, industry, or profession (a "TIP Charter"), or have a "Community
Charter" (typically a field of membership of anyone who lives, works, goes to school,
or attends religious services in a particular city, county, or counties).[51] In the United
States, when a credit union converts to a Community Charter from a SEG Charter or
TIP Charter, it can continue to serve its existing members as well as anyone who lives,
works, worships, or attends school within its new geographical field of membership,
but cannot admit new members from its former SEG(s) or TIP.[52] Similarly, a credit
union that converts to a TIP or SEG charter from a different charter type can no
longer admit new members from its old field of membership.[53]
Typically, members' families -- such as immediate family or household members --
can also join the credit union.[54] In the United States, the National Credit Union
Administration or a state regulator -- depending upon whether or not the credit union
is chartered by the federal government or by a state -- decides whether or not to
approve or deny proposed field of membership expansions or charter conversions to
other credit union charters,[55] and similar procedures are typically used in other
countries.
Credit unions and banks in the United States
Tension has always existed between member-owned cooperative credit unions and
for-profit banks in the US. When credit unions were first organizing in the United
States in the early twentieth century, the banking industry was opposed, remaining so
ever since. Despite the fact that credit unions continue to hold a very small share of
the financial services market, banks and bank trade associations consistently put
anti-credit union legislation at the top of their agendas.[56]
Due to their status as not-for-profit, member-owned financial institutions with no
source of secondary investment capital, credit unions in the United States are exempt
from federal and state income taxes (but, not from employment or property taxes).
Additionally, credit union members pay income tax on dividends earned through
financial participation in the credit union; this is similar to the taxation structure
enjoyed by many banks incorporated under Subchapter S of Chapter 1 of the Internal
Revenue Code.[57]
Bank holding companies and their affiliates aggressively compete to provide services
to credit unions through their ATM networks, corporate checking accounts, and
certificate of deposit programs. In 2007, the American Bankers Association barred
credit union employees from attending ABA sponsored educational seminars. This
includes online classes that require registration. Based upon the pretext that the ABA
only wants to serve its members, the American Bankers Association continues to
attempt to weaken credit unions and take back the 6% market share that credit unions
currently hold.[58]
Credit unions maintain that no matter their size or field of membership, the fact that
they are owned by their members and not shareholders makes them fundamentally
different from banks.[59]
Credit Union-to-Bank Conversions
Since 1995, over thirty U.S. credit unions have converted from credit union charters
to bank charters.[5] These conversions are generally initiated by a credit union's
leadership team, rather than from the rank-and-file membership, and have created
sharp controversy within the credit union industry.[6] Some have questioned whether
these conversions are in the best interests of the credit union members, and have
compared them to the mutual savings bank conversion raids of the 1980s[60].
Like the mutual savings raids, credit union conversions have been very lucrative for
executives and directors of converting credit unions[61]. CU Financial, a consulting
firm that helps credit union management execute these conversions, has explained in
marketing materials that if a credit union with $50 million in capital converts to a
stock bank, under certain conditions a payoff in the ―$1.2 million range for each
director is not out of the question," while executives might also expect additional
stock compensation that "could lead to a $10 million plus ownership stake for a
capable CEO"[62].
Members of at least six credit unions have organized to oppose their management's
conversion proposals, objecting that this insider enrichment comes at the detriment of
credit union members. They point out that while insiders have made windfall profits,
most members have lost their ownership stake without compensation, and face worse
rates and fees after the conversion[7]. Comparisons of interest rates show that credit
unions that have converted to banks now charge their members more for loans, and
pay less for savings.[8][9] Member groups have included Save Columbia Credit
Union, Save First Basin Credit Union, and DFCU Owners United.
The National Center for Member Trust is a consumer protection non-profit "formed to
support the member-owners of credit unions that are attempting to convert to
banks."[10] The Coalition for Credit Union Charter Options is an advocacy group for
converting credit unions. UC Berkeley Professor of Financial Institutions James
Wilcox is an expert who has released a number of studies on the issue. His findings
are summarized in Credit Union Conversions: Ripe for Abuse … and Reforms,
published in the Credit Union Times July of 2006.
See also
Cooperative banking
Irish League of Credit Unions
National Credit Union Administration
References
1. ^ E.g., 12 U.S.C. § 1752(1), available at
http://www.ncua.gov/RegulationsOpinionsLaws/fcu_act/fcu_act.pdf; CUNA Model
Credit Union Act § 0.20 (2007); see also 12 U.S.C. § 1757, available at
http://www.ncua.gov/RegulationsOpinionsLaws/fcu_act/fcu_act.pdf; CUNA Model
Credit Union Act § 3.10 (2007).
2. ^ See, e.g., National Federation of Community Development Credit Unions, "What is
a CDCU?;" http://www.cdcu.coop/i4a/pages/index.cfm?pageid=261
3. ^ See, e.g., WOCCU, "International Development: Development Programs;"
http://www.woccu.org/dev/programs
4. ^ See WOCCU, Statistical Report (2007), available at
http://www.woccu.org/dev/publications
5. ^ Mike Schenk, Vice President for Economics and Statistics, CUNA, "Commercial
Banks and Credit Unions: Facts, Fallacies, and Recent Trends," at *2 (2007),
available at http://advice.cuna.org/download/combanks_cus.pdf
6. ^ WOCCU, "What is a Credit Union?;" http://www.woccu.org/about/creditunion
7. ^ See for example the Ontario Credit Union Act, 1994 (as amended) c.11, s.24 (i)
8. ^ See, e.g., 12 U.S.C. § 1757(6), available at
http://www.ncua.gov/RegulationsOpinionsLaws/fcu_act/fcu_act.pdf; CUNA Model
Credit Union Act § 0.70 (2007).
9. ^ E.g., 12 U.S.C. § 1760, available at
http://www.ncua.gov/RegulationsOpinionsLaws/fcu_act/fcu_act.pdf; CUNA Model
Credit Union Act § 4.90 (2007).
10. ^ E.g., 12 U.S.C. §§ 1760-1761b, available at
http://www.ncua.gov/RegulationsOpinionsLaws/fcu_act/fcu_act.pdf; CUNA Model
Credit Union Act §§ 5.15-5.20 (2007).
11. ^ See, e.g., 12 U.S.C. § 1757, available at
http://www.ncua.gov/RegulationsOpinionsLaws/fcu_act/fcu_act.pdf; CUNA Model
Credit Union Act § 3.10 (2007).
12. ^ E.g., 12 U.S.C. § 1757, available at
http://www.ncua.gov/RegulationsOpinionsLaws/fcu_act/fcu_act.pdf; CUNA Model
Credit Union Act § 3.10 (2007).
13. ^ The Microfinance Gateway, "Credit Unions: Questions to Barry Lennon of
WOCCU," available at http://www.woccu.org/about/creditunion (last visited July 16,
2008) (follow link to "Credit Unions: Questions to Barry Lennon of WOCCU").
14. ^ WOCCU, "What is a Credit Union?;" http://www.woccu.org/about/creditunion.
(last visited July 23, 2008)
15. ^ See, e.g., CUNA, Products and Services, "Spanish Stuffer: Las Cooperativas de
Ahorro y Crédito;" http://buy.cuna.org/detail.php?sku=21807 (last visited July 15,
2008); DePeru, "Cooperativas de Ahorro y Crédito;"
http://www.deperu.com/cooperativas/ (last visited July 15, 2008)
16. ^ See, e.g., Caja Popular Mexicana, "Misión;"
http://www.cpm.org.mx/portal/CPMPortaldeInternet.nsf/CPMPILNFS001?OpenFra
meSet (last visited July 15, 2008) (you have to navigate to the "Misión" link)
17. ^ See, e.g., Desjardins, "Liste de caisses par région,"
http://www.desjardins.com/fr/votre_caisse/caisses-par-region.jsp (last visited July 23,
2008).
18. ^ See, e.g., Banque Populaire de Rwanda, S.A., "Historique de l'UBPR,"
http://www.ubpr.co.rw/historique.htm (last visited July 23, 2008).
19. ^ WOCCU, "What is a Credit Union?," http://www.woccu.org/about/creditunion (last
visited July 23, 2008).
20. ^ World Council of Credit Unions, 2006 Statistical Report.
21. ^ European Association of Cooperative Banks, Annual Statistical Report, 2005.
22. ^ J. Carroll Moody & Gilbert C. Fite. The Credit Union Movement: Origins and
Development 1850 to 1980. Kendall/Hunt Publishing Co., Dubuque, Iowa, 1984, p. 4
23. ^ J. Carroll Moody & Gilbert C. Fite. The Credit Union Movement: Origins and
Development 1850 to 1980. p. 8
24. ^ Compare "not-for-profit," definition B, noun, Oxford English Dictionary (2008)
("An organization, corporation, etc., which does not operate for the purpose of
making a profit."), with "non-profit," definition A(2), noun, Oxford English
Dictionary (2008) ("A non-profit-making organization; spec. a charity.").
25. ^ Compare "not-for-profit," definition A, adjective, Oxford English Dictionary (2008)
("Designating an organization, corporation, etc., which does not operate for the
purpose of making a profit. Cf. NON-PROFIT, adj., FOR-PROFIT adj."), with
WOCCU, "What is a Credit Union?," http://www.woccu.org/about/creditunion ("As
not-for-profit cooperative institutions, credit unions use excess earnings to offer
members more affordable loans, a higher return on savings, lower fees or new
products and services."), and The Microfinance Gateway, "Credit Unions: Questions
to Barry Lennon of WOCCU," available at http://www.woccu.org/about/creditunion
(last visited July 16, 2008) (follow link to "Credit Unions: Questions to Barry Lennon
of WOCCU") ("Credit unions don't try to maximize profitability by charging high
fees or rates of interest because they are owned by the people who use their
services.").
26. ^ See WOCCU, "PEARLS: Ratios: R - Rate of Return and Costs & S - Signs of
Growth;" http://www.woccu.org/dev/pearls/pearlsratios; The Microfinance Gateway,
"Credit Unions: Questions to Barry Lennon of WOCCU," available at
http://www.woccu.org/about/creditunion (last visited July 16, 2008) (follow link to
"Credit Unions: Questions to Barry Lennon of WOCCU").
27. ^ See WOCCU, "PEARLS: Ratios: R - Rate of Return and Costs& S - Signs of
Growth;" http://www.woccu.org/dev/pearls/pearlsratios
28. ^ WOCCU, "What is a Credit Union?;" http://www.woccu.org/about/creditunion
29. ^ See "How to get a credit card without a credit history?"
http://www.onemint.com/2008/08/11/how-to-get-a-credit-card-without-credit-history/
30. ^ U.S. Central FCU, "About U.S. Central,"
http://www.uscentral.org/default.asp?content=about (last visited July 23, 2008).
31. ^ WOCCU, "Mission," http://www.woccu.org/about/mission.
32. ^ WOCCU, "Mission," http://www.woccu.org/about/mission.
33. ^ 2005 statistical report from the World Council of Credit Unions
34. ^ See, e.g., 26 U.S.C. § 501(c)(14)(A) for state-chartered credit unions and 26 U.S.C.
§ 501(c)(1) for federally-chartered credit unions, available at
http://www.law.cornell.edu/uscode/html/uscode26/usc_sec_26_00000501----000-.ht
ml; CUNA Model Credit Union Act § 0.20 (2007); see also 12 U.S.C. §§ 1751 note,
1752(1), 1768, available at
http://www.ncua.gov/RegulationsOpinionsLaws/fcu_act/fcu_act.pdf.
35. ^ See 12 U.S.C. §§ 1751-1772d, available at
http://www.ncua.gov/RegulationsOpinionsLaws/fcu_act/fcu_act.pdf.
36. ^ See, e.g., Massachusetts General Laws chapter 171, §§ 1-84 (2008).
37. ^ "NASCUS State-Chartered Credit Union Facts & Figures". National Association of
State Credit Union Supervisors (2007-12-31). Retrieved on 2008-07-19.
38. ^ See NCUA, "Share Insurance," http://www.ncua.gov/ShareInsurance/index.htm;
see also 12 U.S.C. §§ 1781-1790d, available at
http://www.ncua.gov/RegulationsOpinionsLaws/fcu_act/fcu_act.pdf.
39. ^ See NCUA, "Share Insurance," http://www.ncua.gov/ShareInsurance/index.htm;
see also 12 U.S.C. §§ 1781-1790d, available at
http://www.ncua.gov/RegulationsOpinionsLaws/fcu_act/fcu_act.pdf.
40. ^ See CUNA, "Frequently Requested U.S. Credit Union/Bank Comparisons;"
http://advice.cuna.org/download/freq_compar.pdf
41. ^ See CUNA, "Frequently Requested U.S. Credit Union/Bank Comparisons;"
http://advice.cuna.org/download/freq_compar.pdf
42. ^ "National Credit Union Administration Annual Report 2007". Alexandria, VA:
National Credit Union Administration. Retrieved on 2008-07-07.
43. ^ "FDIC: 2007 Annual Report". Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation (2008-02-15).
Retrieved on 2008-07-14.
44. ^ CUNA Ratedex comparing bank and credit union rates
45. ^ See CUNA, "CU and Commercial Bank Cost of Assets," available at
http://advice.cuna.org/download/CU_Costof_funds_vsBanks.xls
46. ^ Mike Schenk, Vice President for Economics and Statistics, CUNA, "Commercial
Banks and Credit Unions: Facts, Fallacies, and Recent Trends," at *31 (2007),
available at http://advice.cuna.org/download/combanks_cus.pdf
47. ^ Mike Schenk, Vice President for Economics and Statistics, CUNA, "Commercial
Banks and Credit Unions: Facts, Fallacies, and Recent Trends," at *33 (2007),
available at http://advice.cuna.org/download/combanks_cus.pdf
48. ^ See, e.g., NCUA, Letter to Credit Union No. 05-CU-15 Enclosure (2005), available
at http://www.ncua.gov/letters/2005/CU/05-CU-15-Encl.pdf; NCUA, Risk Alert No.
05-RISK-01 (2005), available at
http://www.ncua.gov/RiskAlert/2005/05-RISK-01.pdf; see also 12 C.F.R. pt. 706,
available at
http://ecfr.gpoaccess.gov/cgi/t/text/text-idx?c=ecfr&sid=68450ddd50baefefdd6d4c4b
76a805aa&rgn=div5&view=text&node=12:6.0.2.3.7&idno=12
49. ^ 12 U.S.C. § 1757(5)(A)(viii), available at
http://www.ncua.gov/RegulationsOpinionsLaws/fcu_act/fcu_act.pdf
50. ^ See, e.g., National Credit Union Administration, "Chartering and FOM Manual,"
IRPS 03-01 (2003), as amended by "Organization and Operations of Federal Credit
Unions," IRPS 06-01 (2006), available at
http://www.ncua.gov/RegulationsOpinionsLaws/charter_manual/charter_manual.html
.
51. ^ See, e.g., National Credit Union Administration, "Chartering and FOM Manual,"
IRPS 03-01 (2003), as amended by "Organization and Operations of Federal Credit
Unions," IRPS 06-01 (2006), available at
http://www.ncua.gov/RegulationsOpinionsLaws/charter_manual/charter_manual.html
.
52. ^ See, e.g., National Credit Union Administration, "Chartering and FOM Manual,"
IRPS 03-01 (2003), as amended by "Organization and Operations of Federal Credit
Unions," IRPS 06-01 (2006), available at
http://www.ncua.gov/RegulationsOpinionsLaws/charter_manual/charter_manual.html
.
53. ^ See, e.g., National Credit Union Administration, "Chartering and FOM Manual,"
IRPS 03-01 (2003), as amended by "Organization and Operations of Federal Credit
Unions," IRPS 06-01 (2006), available at
http://www.ncua.gov/RegulationsOpinionsLaws/charter_manual/charter_manual.html
.
54. ^ See, e.g., National Credit Union Administration, "Chartering and FOM Manual,"
IRPS 03-01 (2003), as amended by "Organization and Operations of Federal Credit
Unions," IRPS 06-01 (2006), available at
http://www.ncua.gov/RegulationsOpinionsLaws/charter_manual/charter_manual.html
.
55. ^ See, e.g., National Credit Union Administration, "Chartering and FOM Manual,"
IRPS 03-01 (2003), as amended by "Organization and Operations of Federal Credit
Unions," IRPS 06-01 (2006), available at
http://www.ncua.gov/RegulationsOpinionsLaws/charter_manual/charter_manual.html
.
56. ^ Burger, Carol Anne; David Morrison (2008-02-06). "ABA Priorities Draw
CUNA’s Ire", Credit Union Times, Highline Media. Retrieved on 2008-07-09.
57. ^ 26 U.S.C. §§ 1361-1379, available at
http://www.law.cornell.edu/uscode/uscode26/usc_sup_01_26_10_A_20_1_30_S.html;
see Mike Schenk, Vice President for Economics and Statistics, CUNA, "Commercial
Banks and Credit Unions: Facts, Fallacies, and Recent Trends," at *22-*25 (2007),
available at http://advice.cuna.org/download/combanks_cus.pdf
58. ^ American Bankers Association, "Industry Issues: Operation Credit Unions,"
http://www.aba.com/Industry+Issues/OperationCreditUnions.htm
59. ^ Why Credit Unions are tax exempt, from the governmental affairs section of
CUNA's web site.
60. ^ "For Years, Consultants and Greed Have Driven Coops in Other Industries to go
Stock-owned; CU Wave May be Just Starting", Credit Union Times, March 17th,
2004.
61. ^ "For Years, Consultants and Greed Have Driven Coops in Other Industries to go
Stock-owned; CU Wave May be Just Starting", Credit Union Times, March 17th,
2004.
62. ^ Albert B. Crenshaw, Banks Look to Make Converts Of Credit Unions, Washington
Post, February 11, 2006, page D1
Further reading
Ian MacPherson. Hands Around the Globe: A History of the International
Credit Union Movement and the Role and Development of the World Council
of Credit Unions, Inc. Horsdal & Schubart Publishers Ltd, 1999.
External links
INTERNATIONAL: World Council of Credit Unions trade association for
credit unions worldwide headquartered in Madison, WI.
Asia: Association of Asian Confederations of Credit Unions regional
federation representing 21 national federations in Asia with 35 million retail
members
Australia: "Cuscal Ltd" Credit Union Services Corporation, Australia, Limited
represents 85% of the credit unions.
Australia: Abacus - Australian Mutuals represents Credit Unions and Mutual
Building Societies
Canada: Department of Finance Canada
Canada: Credit Union Central of Canada
Canada: Credit Union Central of British Columbia
Canada: Credit Unions of British Columbia
Canada: Desjardins Group
Canada: Virtual tour of Highway 11's explanation of what a "Caisse
Populaire" (French for "Credit union") is
Ireland: Irish League of Credit Unions representative and services agency.
Scotland: Scottish League of Credit Unions
Ukraine: Credit Union State Authority
Ukraine: Ukrainian national trade association for credit unions
UK: Association of British Credit Unions largest national body for British
Credit Unions.
UK: UKCU a national trade association for credit unions, steering groups and
credit union support organisations.
UK: National Association of Credit Union Workers professional association
for Credit Union Workers throughout Britain.
US: Credit Union National Association is a trade association for US credit
unions
US: National Credit Union Administration regulates all Federal credit unions
and insures most US credit unions (through its National Credit Union Share
Insurance Fund, aka NCUSIF).
US: National Credit Union Foundation is the charitable arm of the credit union
industry
US: National Association of Federal Credit Unions trade association that
exclusively represents the interests of federally chartered credit unions.
US: Credit Union Executives Society professional association primarily
focused on U.S. credit union leaders
US: CreditUnions.com independent industry analysis, research and
performance data on all federal, state, and privately insured U.S. credit unions.
US: CreditUnionsOnline.com articles, directory, and financial and
membership data on U.S. credit unions.
