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Trust is key to CU growth, says NAFCU's Berger in NCBA feature
"Trust is the most compelling, sustainable thing that cooperatives and credit unions have," said NAFCU President and CEO Dan Berger in an interview with the National Cooperative Business Association (NCBA).
Despite growing competition in the marketplace and industry consolidation, the credit union industry continues to grow, boasting over 115 million members nationwide and over 4 percent year-over-year membership growth. Citing trust as a core reason credit unions continue to grow, Berger noted, "the one thing banks and fintechs don't have, and I don't think will ever have, is trust. In every survey you see out there – and there are dozens done every year that compare financial institutions and folks in the banking space – credit unions are always on top when it comes to trust."
"Credit unions have built and maintained that trust. That trust really is the cooperative advantage, and there are huge opportunities that come along with that," he added.
To help credit unions better meet the needs of their members, Berger said he retooled the association's focus when he became CEO in 2013. "We had to take a step back and ask, 'What's our mission?' It's to strengthen credit unions and help them grow. So we asked our members what they needed to grow. And almost every CEO, every member out there, said they needed us for our advocacy, our education and training, and our compliance assistance. So that's [what] we do," said Berger.
To read the full NCBA feature article, click here.