EDINBURGH, Scotland--The Scottish Parliament got a jump on International Credit Union Week and Day by celebrating it a week in advance. At a reception hosted by John Wilson, a member of the Scottish Parliament, and the Association of British Credit Unions, credit unions and stakeholders came tougher to celebrate the success of Scotland’s credit unions and to discuss ways to continue to flourish. The reception, sponsored by CUNA Mutual, included as a speaker Joe Schroeder, CEO of Ventura County CU in California, who outlined how American credit unions have grown to provide a full range of services to people from all walks of life while retaining their community focus and co-operative values, according to the ABCUL.
Guests also heard from the Parliament’s Convener of the Cross-Party Group on Credit Unions John Wilson MSP, CUNA Mutual Key Account Manager Bobby Gould, and ABCUL Chief Executive Mark Lyonette. Scotland has just over 100 credit unions that serve more than 355,000 people. The ABCUL reported that between September 2013 and March 2014, an average of 550 people joined a credit union in Scotland every week.