Steven Hill
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The Squamish Credit Union name has changed and so has its local spending power.
Squamish Credit Union became Squamish Savings at the end of 2005 as a result of its merger with Vancity Credit Union.
Squamish Savings general manager Bill Brumpton said it is business as usual at the institution, which boasts more than 7,000 local accounts.
"Our signage will change and say Squamish Savings, and will look pretty much as it did before, but it will say underneath 'a division of Vancity'," he said. "When we went into these merger discussions with Vancity, the whole idea of the concept was for it to be a partner merger. Vancity has given us an agreement, which gives us a certain degree of independence."
Although the merger has already happened, Brumpton said clients wouldn't see immediate changes at the branch until July."For our members it means they will get access to Vancity branches in the city, and this is a 'will-be', because although the merger is a done deal, we have to change computer systems first for our clients to be able to do that," he said. "That won't happen until July 8.
"Once that happens our members will be able to walk into any Vancity branch and do business."
Brumpton said the merger came as a result of needing a larger base to draw from financially, and the need for better computer systems.
"Our operation had $60 to $70 million in total assets," he said. "We were limited in what we could do in the community, in so far as lending. No individual or organization could borrow more than $800,000 from us.
"With real estate prices going the way they are, that cut us out of that business. Now with Vancity, we are virtually unlimited in what we can lend. Of course people still need to qualify."
Along with better lending power, the merger benefits the community in other ways, according to Brumpton."One of the things we negotiated with Vancity was we put $662,000 into a community foundation which our board of directors controls," he said.
"That money will be a legacy fund for the community under the name Squamish Legacy Fund. The plan is to develop a strategy to disperse the funds."
The purpose of this foundation will be one of the topics presented at the Squamish Savings Members' meeting on Wednesday, April 19, 2006 at the Sea to Sky Hotel.
Brumpton said patrons will always get the same service they expected at the bank.
"As far as the people they are used to seeing here, that won't change," he said. "Hopefully we will offer better services with a new computer system coming online in July."
