ST. PAUL, Minn. – Affinity Plus Federal Credit Union member Sheila M. was greeted by Santa with the gift of $1,000 as a part of her participation in the WINcentive Savings Account program. The gift was Sheila’s winning for the statewide Special Holiday Drawing through the program due to her savings habits throughout November. Along with the Special Holiday Drawing, the WINcentive program also announced 45 $100 prize drawing winners throughout Minnesota for the month.
WINcentive Savings incentivizes consumers in to save by offering risk-free rewards. WINcentive prizes are awarded on a monthly, quarterly, and annual basis, with prizes ranging from $100 to $5,000. Account-holders qualify for up to four chances per month for each $25 increase in their month over month savings balance.
WINcentive Minnesota marked $5 million in total account balances throughout the state in July. Currently, nearly 7,000 WINcentive accounts are open at the 22 participating Minnesota credit unions. Members with WINcentive accounts keep an average balance of over $850, accounting for a total of over $5.5 million saved in open accounts to date.
As the program continues to grow, WINcentive said it is anticipating the following program enhancements for 2019:
- An estimated $100,000 in prizes, up from an estimated $80,000 in 2018, subject to anticipated participation by credit unions
- One guaranteed quarterly, credit union specific-drawing, of $100 each for every participating credit union*
- Two Special Holiday drawings to be held in December 2019 of $1,000
- Two $5,000 grand prize drawings, up from 1 $5,000 grand prize drawing in 2018
In April, WINcentive announced program eligibility for credit union members in Wisconsin. The Minnesota Credit Union Network and TruLync, a wholly-owned subsidiary of the association, also administer prize-linked savings programs in Delaware, Louisiana, New York, Montana, and Wisconsin.