Members Credit Union (MCU) released the 2022 Annual Report in May 2023. Here is a recap of the annual shareholder’s meeting that was held on Friday, January 27th, 2023.
On Friday, January 27th, 2023, Members Credit Union (MCU) held its annual shareholder's meeting. The meeting was called to order, followed by a unanimous vote to re-elect Jerry T. Church, William A. Tittsworth, Richard L. Trotter, and Tommy Rhoney to serve a three-year term on the credit union's Board of Directors. President and CEO, Bob Donley, presented the results of 2022 and the plans for 2023; Mr. Donley reported the impact of actions taken during the COVID-19 pandemic continued to affect our economy negatively during 2022. Inflation rose to near-record levels, affecting every part of our lives; food, energy, transportation, housing, borrowing, and clothing, while also affecting the labor pool and the ability to fill vacant positions. As we adjusted to the after-effects of the pandemic, MCU continued to focus on their "WHY," "To be the caring and trusted financial partner to each member, so our members are able to focus less on finances and more on what really matters in their daily lives." Knowing the credit union could make a positive difference in the lives of our members; the MCU staff worked that much harder to fulfill our "WHY".
During the first quarter of 2022, to serve our membership 24/7, our Digital Engagement department added an Artificial Intelligence "Chatbot" service to our website, answering our members' most common questions with an immediate response in English and Spanish. The Chatbot, dubbed "Mem-Bie," has served over 6,700 unique users and answered 41,000 questions. Approximately 71% of the interactions occurred during regular business hours, and the remaining 29% occurred after hours. After two years of muted spending and federal and state government pandemic assistance inflows, our members returned to spending. MCU experienced a net deposit growth of approximately 1.00% in 2022, and our two-year deposit growth was an excellent 17.4%; borrowing needs for our members resulted in a 10.50% loan growth.
Looking ahead in 2023, our Board approved becoming a Certified Development Financial Institution (CDFI) and applying for Low-Income Designation. Plans to partner with CU Strategic Services to implement the application process for each designation are in order. This process will allow us to apply for Federal grant funds to offset the cost of new financial products and services. "We believe both of these designations fit very well into our overall mission of meeting the financial needs of every member in the communities we serve, with an even greater emphasis on those members of modest means." States Donley. Also, in 2023 MCU plans to develop our Learning Management System further to help magnify our devotion to training our employees to equip them to meet the needs of our members and meet their professional development goals.
In closing, President and CEO; Bob Donley expressed his gratitude to MCUs membership, employees, and the credit union's Board of Directors for their unwavering support and loyalty throughout a very challenging, rewarding, and sometimes difficult 2022. The next annual shareholder's meeting is scheduled for January 2024.
