SASKATOON — As the world celebrated International Credit Union Day on Thursday, Oct. 16, Conexus Credit Union CEO Celina Philpot highlighted the vital role credit unions like theirs play in the communities they serve, in contrast to big-name financial institutions.
Philpot told SaskToday that credit unions help create prosperity for the communities in which they operate, aligning with the International Cooperative Alliance’s “Cooperatives Build a Better World” theme this year.
“This year’s theme says that around cooperation, we build a prosperous world. So, what credit unions do is we are keenly focused on serving our local communities and helping to bring prosperity to our members. As we support every single member to achieve their definition of financial success, we in turn employ in those communities, and we contribute to the vitality and the growth of the economy and the communities that we serve,” said Philpot.
She added that, as member-owned, credit unions drive member value by providing financial services that are more personal and unique, especially in places like Saskatchewan, unlike traditional financial institutions that focus more on shareholder value.
“Unlike the chartered banks, it doesn't get centralized in a location somewhere. Those decisions are made locally, which enables us to provide a better response for our members. The products and services we provide to our members are uniquely designed to meet the needs of our local communities. That's not necessarily the same as the needs across Canada, because credit unions are provincially mandated, we are hyper-focused on serving our members and creating those unique experiences and the products and services that really meet the needs of our local community,” Philpot said.
She cited farmers and those working in the province’s agricultural industry as examples, saying that they are supported through an Agro Fund. This fund tailors specific products designed to help them increase their opportunities and production on their farms, which are uniquely created to address the growing needs within Saskatchewan.
“We believe that by improving the local economy, we can bring prosperity to each of our members by creating the opportunity to empower them to define and achieve that financial success. By doing that collectively for all of our members, we're creating prosperity within the communities themselves. Our focus is 100 per cent Saskatchewan,” added Philpot.
Philpot said credit unions, like Conexus, continue to evolve and innovate, just like other financial institutions, to meet the demands of their members and consumers by using the latest technology as the world moves further into the digital era.
“Consumers continue to evolve how they want to interact with their financial service provider, and technology has become a great enabler. We no longer serve our members through our branches; instead, we have an active call centre available for support. We also deliver services digitally through our development of a digital online banking app. So, as consumers continue to evolve with their banking preferences, we as credit unions are very aware of that. We aim to provide products and services that meet the evolving needs of our members. So yeah, we continue to develop and innovate to offer greater value to our members, but we still have a core branch system and network that is there to support our members in person as well,” she added.
International Credit Union Day is observed globally, celebrating credit cooperatives and unions for being unique financial institutions that serve the needs of their communities.
