Members will stay with their credit union rather than join another financial institution whose locations may be more convenient to a member.
Potential Members
Shared branching offers greater convenience and provides the incentive for potential members to join and use their local credit union.
Greater Service Area
Shared branches deliver services more economically in areas where credit unions do not have enough members to justify a branch.
Branch Utilization
Shared branching can breathe new life into under-utilized branches.
Disaster Recovery
Shared branches can support credit unions during a disaster by providing service to members via connectivity to host sites or ‘hot’ sites.
Existing Members
Members and their families will find shared branches more convenient and, therefore use more credit union services.
Potential Members
Shared branches offer greater convenience and provide the incentive for potential members to join and use their credit union.
Members Who Travel
Shared branches offer greater convenience for members who travel for business/pleasure in Florida, across the United States, DC, Puerto Rico, Guam, Italy, Germany, Netherlands and Canada.
Members Who Relocate
Credit union members are more likely to remain members and continue being serviced by their credit unions through shared branches.
College Students
Whether in Florida or out of state, college students are able to remain active members of their credit union through shared branching. Parents are able to provide their children with access to financial services through their credit union no matter where the student goes to school.
Extended Hours
40% of Florida shared branches have evening/Saturday hours.
Symbol of Cooperation/Reciprocity
Shared branches are a visual symbol of the cooperative spirit of the credit union industry. The shared branch logo is a national trademark.
Improved Image
The visibility of cooperative branches improves the image of credit unions and is a constant reminder to consumers that credit unions are an alternative to other financial institutions.
Improved Industry Competitiveness
By combining resources, credit unions decrease the cost of delivering member service and increase service distribution channels. This improves the credit unions’ ability to compete with other financial institutions.
Creating a National Network
Shared Services for Credit Unions (SS4CU) is the Florida credit union’s gateway to the national network, CO-OP Shared Branch. Today, the collaboration of branches puts credit unions in the top 5 in the nation for number of branches. If all credit unions nationwide were to share their more than 20,000 branches, the credit union industry would blow away the competition.