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Talking Credit Unions delves into the latest trends shaping the financial landscape, equipping credit unions with the insights they need to stay ahead in a rapidly evolving industry. This podcast also tackles key issues facing the movement, fostering knowledge sharing and collaboration. Featuring a diverse line-up of credit union leaders, experts, researchers, and industry suppliers, it offers valuable perspectives to drive best practices, innovation, and success.
Talking Credit Unions is brought to you by the Swoboda Research Centre, which works to support positive change and transformation in the credit union movement. (https://swobodacentre.org/).
The podcast’s current producer and host, Anca Voinea, is a trained journalist with over 13 years of experience in the co-operative and credit union sectors. To suggest a podcast topic or for any other inquiries, contact her at anca.voinea@swobodacentre.org.
36 Episodes
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Send us a text Can credit unions truly be the gold standard of ethical finance? Join our enlightening exchange with ethics-man Barry Clavin, as we scrutinize whether these institutions are walking the talk of their cooperative principles. We traverse the complex terrain of credit union ethics, addressing their genuine commitment to these values, and the potential benefits of adopting a unified ethical identity. Are there any lessons to be learnt from landmark policy of the Cooperative Bank. B...
Send us a text Paul Jones and Nick Money update us on the wide list of projects, papers and conferences coming up in the next 12 months at the Swoboda Research Centre. Hear about: New credit union lending projectsSustainable credit unionsUpdates on the Governance ManualNew faces at SwobodaJonathon Moore's views on credit unionsTalking Credit Unions is a regular podcast dedicated to informing credit union practitioners, leaders, and opinion formers on a variety of industry topics. The podcast...
Send us a text The past two years has been the ultimate stress test for the financial, operational, competitive, and cultural resiliency of credit unions. Leaders have greater depth of insight into the risks facing their credit union and can now better plan for and address those risks, allowing the organisation to focus primarily on longer-term opportunities. Some credit unions are only now emerging from the lockdown to seek new members in a tremendously competitive and digital world. The eco...
Send us a text What a year for this agenda. First came shock; and then came shows of support. But they’re only worth a penny if we do not move to meaningful action and concrete change. Change you can see. Change you can measure. And change that makes a material difference to people’s lives. To achieve that, we can’t just speak about one aspect of diversity and inclusion without also understanding the importance of all others, and how they intersect to make up someone’s experiences. But follow...
Send us a text A brief round-up on CFCFE, ABCUL and World Council of Credit Unions conferences. Talking Credit Unions is a regular podcast dedicated to informing credit union practitioners, leaders, and opinion formers on a variety of industry topics. The podcast is sponsored by the Swoboda Research Centre.
Send us a text This interview took place immediately after Manchester CFCFE Conference in Manchester. At that conference Todd had outlined his extensive experience of IT solutions in the credit union sector in the USA, and his recent engagement with Irish credit unions. Todd noted that core IT system replacement, the focus of his presentation, is a very significant project for credit unions, but because there have been so many of these in the US (over 600 in the last five years) there is now ...
Send us a text I was at CFCFE’s conference in Manchester (17th January) and Drew Povey spoke about leadership in a time of change, and how to show courage; Rob McIntosh explained his vision of digital community, how it can be realised and how it is relevant – critical – to credit unions; Marloes Nicholls summarised the risks and significant opportunities for credit unions from the effective use of open banking; Todd Proulx considered why, when and how to change core IT systems. Delegates said...
Send us a text December 2019 - Preview 2020 Podcasts Chris Smith - Talking Credit Unions Interview with Abbie Shelton about a Oral History project about the Uk Credit Union movement. Starting with a possible pilot in the north of the country leading to a national roll-out if the project receives the funding.A preview of the forthcoming CFCFE Manchester Conference, in January 17th 2020 from an interview by Nick MoneyA run through of some of the topics these podcasts will cover in 2020 by Chris...
Send us a text The credit union landscape is transforming rapidly across Ireland and Britain. Fresh legislation has created unprecedented opportunities for innovation – yet significant hurdles remain. How can credit unions balance digital transformation with their co-operative ethos? What strategies will attract younger members while serving existing ones? These questions took centre stage at the recent Swoboda Research Conference in Dublin, where experts shared insights and solutions....
Send us a text Artificial intelligence (AI) is rapidly transforming financial services, with 75% of firms in Great Britain and 54% in Ireland already adopting the technology. For credit unions, this presents both opportunities and challenges as they seek to harness AI while staying true to their co-operative values and member-centric mission. In this podcast episode, Anca explores the role of AI in the credit union sector with four expert guests. David Fagleman, Co-founder and Director of Enr...
Send us a text Collaboration and mergers within the credit union sector may become more prevalent in future as credit unions in Ireland and Great Britain are navigating the challenges of maintaining their local identity while achieving economies of scale. This podcast, with expert commentary from Nick Money of the Swoboda Research Centre and Paul Norgrove, CEO of Serve and Protect Credit Union and Ronaldo Hardy from the USA association NACUSO, tackles the strategic decisions credit unions are...
Send us a text Listen to a conversation with George Hofheimer, the advisor and author of "Banking on the Human Scale." As we navigate the challenges that credit unions face in the digital era, George illuminates the path ahead, offering strategic insight into blending technological investments with the human service that defines credit unions. The traditional face-to-face service is not lost, but rather enhanced as George makes a compelling case for a harmonious merge of the old and the new. ...
Send us a text Several responses to this question by credit union leaders: *Rate tart is a term used in banking to describe someone who transfers balances repeatedly, chasing the best possible interest rates on savings. David McAuley, CEO, Donore CU, Ireland " Are our members 'rate tarts'* and leave the credit union, if we pay insufficient dividend? Our members in the main are not big savers. So, while there will be one or two members disgruntled with no dividend and they do tend to ...
Send us a text This podcast captures the views of some financial services industry commentators on the merits and drawbacks of ESAS (Employee Salary Advance Schemes). Guests on this podcast are: Matt Bland, CEO Co-op Credit Union, UKEmily Trant, head of Impact & Inclusion, WagestreamLindsay Melvin, CEO FlexiwageErik Porter, Wellbeing expertHow a Employee Salary Advance Scheme works: Specialist scheme operators, which are usually unregulated businesses, often provide the product as part o...
Send us a text This summer saw the publication 'Gambling, Vulnerability and FCA Compliance' (How financial services firms can achieve the best outcomes for vulnerable customers who gamble), by Sharon Collard and Katie Cross at the Bristol University Personal Finance Research Centre. Credit unions are seeing increased levels of gambling activity on members accounts, especially since the pandemic. Many credit unions can conduct more forensic assessment of members accounts following...
Send us a text The Save and Sound project is now looking further afield for more credit union memories. The project wants to make sure that the efforts of people who worked to set up and run credit unions in the early days of the movement are not forgotten. The history of British credit unions is a diverse and inspiring one and the project wants to hear from anyone who was involved with a credit union in whatever way. Anyone with any information about early credit unions is ...
Send us a text The purpose of credit unions is obvious, isn’t it? Well, isn’t it? One of the perceptions about credit unions is that they ‘alleviate poverty’ and I guess many within the Irish & UK credit union movement will accept that perception. I suspect that banks are not perceived as alleviating poverty, by the general public or even bank workers. So, do credit unions alleviate poverty? I spoke to three well known experienced credit union people; Paul Jones, Eileen Halligan &am...
Send us a text This is podcast is where I look at another mobile 'app' being currently used by some credit unions. In this edition I talk with the enthusiastic Karen Bennett, CEO of the Merseyside based Enterprise Credit Union, about its fairly recent take up member mobile ‘app’ CUApps. Firstly, I spoke with the two young Scots tech entrepreneurs, Declan McGallagy and Jack Alison who founded CU Apps over eight years ago. They tell me how they specialise in premium mobile app and ...
Send us a text I’ve decided to have a closer look at the world of credit union ‘apps’ or Fintech, as some call it. Many of you are aware that a tsunami of helpful apps has arrived at the door of credit unions in the last few years and in many cases transformed how members interact or communicate with their credit union. Some credit unions have willingly adopted the apps available, and some are still considering. Perhaps there is still a little suspicion of earlier tech failures in the Irish &...
Send us a text I've always been amazed at the passion and support for this unique form of credit union education that has seen over 4,500 credit union employees, volunteers, directors and supporters attending over the years. The EU version has been running several years, with events usually based in the UK. The US version, of the DE event, has been around for almost 40 years. The main purpose of the DE programmes is to "..... is to help established and emerging leaders within the...
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