Ethos Public Relations Manchester

ABCUL welcomes £38 million Government investment in credit unions

by Ethos public relations

The Association of British Credit Unions Ltd (ABCUL) has welcomed today’s announcement that the Government will invest up to £38 million in credit unions over the next three years.

The money, which is in addition to £13 million invested in 2011/12, will be used to support credit unions to modernise and expand and help provide the infrastructure to enable them to do this. It follows the publication of a feasibility study commissioned by the Department for Work and Pensions, which provided recommendations for how credit unions could sustainably provide services for up to a million more people over the next five years.

The investment will be conditional upon the credit union industry meeting a number of agreed milestones for collaboration, modernisation and expansion. A more collaborative way of working can help credit unions to achieve economies of scale, provide a wider range of services to members and will enable developments such as access to credit union services through the Post Office to become a reality.

ABCUL Chief Executive Mark Lyonette said: “Credit unions in Britain already provide financial services to nearly a million people, many on low to moderate incomes. But we know that credit union sectors around the world, by working together behind the scenes and offering a broad range of products, reach many more people, including, but certainly not restricted to, those at the lower end of the income scale.

“So I very much welcome the recognition from Government that credit unions should be a mainstream option for saving and borrowing. This £38 million investment will help provide the infrastructure the sector needs and assist credit unions to develop services that will benefit everyone in the communities they serve, on a sustainable footing.”

Posted at 27^th June 2012