It’s been well over a century since the first Caisse Populaire took root in Canada, started in Lévis, Québec by Alphonse Desjardins. In 1937, St. Malo became home to Manitoba’s first.
Today, the collective of 19 Manitoba branches are on the verge of a historic merger with the Assiniboine and Westoba Credit Unions.
Between June 6–19, members of all three financial institutions are invited to vote on the potential merger.
“Each of our founding members had the same dream,” states the Collaboration MB website. “They imagined what would be possible if individuals came together and created a way to lend each other money at fair rates when banks would not. Some were farmers, labourers, and electrical workers who experienced the financial hardships of the Great Depression or World War II.”1
In the same cooperative vein on which the caisse and credit unions were founded, so too the merger of the three institutions is being introduced as a sustainable way to face the digital complexities of modern-day banking.
In recent months, the boards of directors and administrative teams from all three institutions have been collaborating on the proposed merger which they believe is in the best interest of their collective 216,000 members.
“It isn’t just a good idea; it is a merger that drives prosperity and is filled with possibilities,” says Collaboration MB. “We are asking you to support this merger for the future of our members, employees, and communities. Vote yes and oui. It’s imperative.”
It’s a collaboration, they say, that will create much greater strength going forward, providing members with better products and services and employees with more career options than before.
As important, though, is the need to face the reality of current and emerging financial trends in terms of digitization, globalization, and cybersecurity.
“All credit unions/caisses are faced with the same technology, regulatory, and competitive challenges, which are expensive,” reads the statement. “We have been carefully watching and planning for emerging trends in the financial industry, many of which our founders could never have imagined 80 years ago. The banking landscape is changing quickly and dramatically around us.”
The challenges they need to collectively prepare for include “open banking,” a system already in use in Australia and the UK and making its way to Canada, which provides a secure way for financial institutions to share client information.
“It puts you in control of your financial data, provides you with more choices and options, and enables you to view all your financial information in one place.”
In order to remain relevant, financial institutions will also need to stay up to speed on the latest efforts towards electronic representations, such as authentication and verification factors, for each of their clients. These require sophisticated and secure banking systems.
Of course, cybersecurity is a very real and growing concern. According to the collaborative, the security tools required by financial institutions are continually evolving, requiring more resources, expertise, and investment all the time.
The need to evolve in terms of their product and service offerings is also great.
“The most recent Manitoba data tells us that approximately 90 percent of banking transactions are performed with digital banking and mobile apps. How members use our products and services—and want to use our products and services—is evolving, and we have to keep up with your expectations.”
Having the capacity to offer payment app services similar to Apple Pay, Google Pay, and Samsung Pay is important in order to stay competitive, they add.
At the same time, the regulatory environment faced by all financial institutions is also in a constant state of flux. According to the Credit Union Central of Manitoba, regulatory compliance costs to credit unions and caisses have increased by 134 percent in the last eight years.
“We believe it’s imperative to merge now, for us and the next generation. There are changes and advancements in the industry that our founding members could not have imagined. But we do think they would have seen what was needed, and that they would have come to the same conclusion—that this merger makes sense.”
During the two June weeks designated for Caisse member voting, secure and confidential online ballots will be available at ww.caissevote.biz. Each Caisse branch will also serve as a voting station during their normal hours of operation. Members are asked to bring identification in order to vote.
To close out the voting period, Caisse will host a virtual special meeting of members on June 19 at 7:00 p.m. Members are asked to preregister for this event by June 17.
