INDIANAPOLIS – Indiana’s credit unions played host to a group of 24 representatives from credit unions in Latin America who visited for several days to learn more about the American credit union business. The visit was coordinated between the Indiana Credit Union League and the World Council of Credit Unions (WOCCU).
The visitors represented credit unions in Costa Rica, Dominican Republic, Ecuador and Guatemala, and they were hosted throughout their visit by the Indiana League and a number of credit unions.
The trip was part of WOCCU’s Immersion Learning Program which focuses on exploring operations, innovative strategies and creative solutions to the shared challenges facing credit unions and financial cooperatives around the world. This is the third visit of its kind to take place in Indiana during the past two years. Past visitors have been from credit unions in Ecuador and the Netherlands, the Indiana league reported.
Hoosier Hospitality
“We were pleased to be able to offer the credit union version of Hoosier hospitality while helping this group learn more about how credit unions operate and serve their members in Indiana,” said League President John McKenzie in a statement. “Over the three days of the visit, we had meetings for the group at the League office, four credit unions and the Indiana state capitol building. They were also able to attend part of the Kroger Credit Union Conference, hosted by Karla Salisbury, who is the president/CEO of KEMBA Indianapolis CU and chairman of the league board. The event was held in Indianapolis, where credit unions from across the country were gathered.”
Added Salisbury, “To have these international visitors with us was a wonderful addition to the Kroger Conference. We included a session of information exchange where several American credit unions told the group about the successes and challenges at their credit unions, and the Latin American credit unions did the same.”
The WOCCU View
Members of the group included credit union employees and board members from the Latin American credit unions. According to WOCCU Program Manager Thomas Belekevich, who was with the group throughout the visit, “They were very interested to learn how U.S. credit unions are using technology to expand the availability of service and improve operational efficiencies. The delegation was very impressed with the level of sophistication they witnessed in service channels offered by the credit unions visited. They admired the extent to which credit unions collaborate through formal initiatives like shared branching and other CUSO services, as well as informally by sharing experiences. There was significant discussion of the opportunities that exist for small credit unions in Latin America to improve sustainability through similar collaborative efforts.”