The $740 million VSECU in Montpelier, Vt., said Tuesday it has been accepted as a member of the Global Alliance for Banking on Values, an independent network of values-based banks, banking cooperatives, credit unions, microfinance institutions and community development banks from around the world.
VSECU said it is the first U.S.-based credit union to earn membership in the global organization, joining 35 other financial institutions, including seven U.S. banks, in a joint commitment to use finance to promote sustainable social, environmental and economic development.
To earn membership in GABV, financial institutions must have a values-driven agenda at the core of their mission and adhere to the organization’s principles of sustainable banking.
The credit union’s GABV membership acceptance was based on VSECU’s initiatives such as Co-op Capital, which invests in cooperative organizations; products such as VGreen Energy Savings loans; and collaborative partnerships with equity crowdfunding platform Milk Money and The Lightening Jar, a coworking space for entrepreneurs, professionals and students.
VSECU President/CEO Rob Miller said in a prepared statement that the GABV membership is important because it will enable Vermont’s largest state-chartered credit union to tap into resources with some of the top minds of the global organization.
In addition to VSECU, the seven U.S. financial institutions that are GABV members include Sunrise Banks in St. Paul, Minn., New Resource Bank in San Francisco, Beneficial State Bank in Oakland, Calif., Southern Bancorp in Arkadelphia, Ark., First GREEN Bank in Orlando, Fla., City First Bank of D.C. and Amalgamated Bank in New York City.
“By joining this global values-based banking movement, we have greater resources to leverage as we work to increase our local impact in a sustainable way,” Miller said. “This relationship will help guide our efforts to put finance to work for meaningful social impact for our members, employees and all Vermonters, and help us demonstrate the value of a model that puts people before profit and invests in the financial well-being of our members and communities.”
