By Susan Mitchell, President, Mitchell, Stankovic & Associates

The Underground Community has done it again! We collided—or rather hosted another Underground Collision—in Singapore with the World Council of Credit Union’s annual conference.

The location was an excellent place to discuss and debate a lot of the topics the Underground holds dear. Singapore is known for innovation, a connecting point for its ports and a global business hub, which also makes it highly diverse.

Thank you to our Global Underground Collision speakers for their honest dialogue and passion. From left to right are Police CU (UK) CEO Paul Norgrove, Asian Confederation of Credit Unions CEO Leni San Roque, Mitchell Stankovic CEO Susan Mitchell, CU Solutions Group SVP Brandi Stankovic, Coopera CEO Miriam De Dios Woodward, and Mitchell Stankovic Associate Patsy Van Ouwerkerk.

Singaporeans take pride in the tiny, island country’s diversity and the harmony in which they live. The U.S. could definitely learn from them. Underserved and minority consumers in the U.S. frequently feel they don’t have enough money to have a relationship with a financial institution and they believe financial institutions are not interested in serving households like theirs. Privacy is another concern for them. Through our experts’ discussions we learned that the underserved in the U.S. tend to be lower-income, less-educated, younger, minorities (particularly black and Hispanic), and working-age people with disabilities.

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“We are all part of a huge global movement of 200 million + members... but yet there are 7 billion people across the globe, many of those are financially underserved,” Police Credit Union (UK) CEO Paul Norgrove stated, “with little or no access to financial services. We may be giants, but we must keep evolving.

“Why are we called a movement? Because we shouldn’t stand still.”

Minority and other underserved peoples’ sense of exclusion is only part of the equation that keeps credit unions and other financial institutions from reflecting the diversity of the communities they serve. On the institutions’ side, many are not comfortable serving new markets because of perceived barriers, such as language and traditional identification for account opening. They also feel the ROÍ isn’t there to serve these populations. We have an opportunity and need to work hard to bridge the gaps, especially as all communities are changing and these are the most financially untapped.

Why does this matter? Because 55% of the unbanked worldwide are women and 54% are the poorest households and 54% are young adults. Raising them up raises everyone up. Not with a handout, but a hand up! As CEO of the Asian Confederation of Credit Unions Leni San Roque implored, “Internalize the true meaning of being a credit union. Practice and live it!”

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Coopera CEO Miriam De Dios Woodward, one of the Underground Collision panelists, explained how financial institutions, and credit unions in particular, are necessary to achieve the American dream. When it comes to financial inclusion, credit unions need to meet individuals where they are today with their financial needs. “This doesn’t mean individuals want to stay at this stage. We all have aspirations,” she shared. “Growing up as an unbanked Mexican immigrant myself, my family needed a place to cash our check at first, but then we needed a financial institution that could help us achieve the American dream.”

Credit unions role is greater than the products they offer. This means being prepared to help individuals with needs beyond the traditional, such as referring them to other community organizations for human services, in addition to wealth and credit building. And don’t forget the power of visible diversity on the frontline to make minorities feel more welcome. The most important thing, Woodward said, is, “Quit discussing and start doing!”

Norgrove agreed, “We cannot just be a me too of financial services.... We have to define and shape what we are. We must stand up and stand out. If we are to remain relevant, it is not just about innovative products and services. We must continue to educate and work with our regulatory bodies on the benefits on the cooperative movement and continuously improve governance to break through our glass ceiling.”

Norgrove pointed out that the World Council has done some work on a global scale that can be emulated at individual credit unions or certain communities. For example:

Credit for Agriculture Producers) Ukraine – Funded by USAID to drive change by improving the legal and regulatory environment, increasing collaboration with trade associations to expand services, improve liquidity and financial soundness of credit unions.

Rural Finance and Cooperative Development in Afghanistan – Grew from 16 institutions to 27, membership doubled from 46k to 92k, savings invested increased by 110% to 4.4m by the end of the project disbursing over 100,000 loans totaling $71.4m and creating an estimated 154,000 jobs.

TSCU Liberia - Improving mobile technology to improve access to service for the unbanked. Using credit unions as agents for mobile service providers to offer products and services through the credit unions’ branch and network.

Norgrove concluded, “So, we are small, but we are giants when we do something different.”

But there is power in numbers, and credit unions were founded upon a philosophy of collaboration. Mitchell, Stankovic Associate Patsy Van Ouwerkerk pointed out that credit unions’ shared branching concept was revolutionary at the time – still is, but, she questioned, “When was the last time credit unions came together to create something like shared branching?” Credit unions need to seriously discuss where their members’ money is best spent and investing in an awareness campaign like CUNA’s proposed $100 million-dollar, three-year plan could be a good start. What is credit unions’ next shared branching?

More to come from the global Underground Collision. Stay tuned!