Synergy Credit Union CEO, Trevor Beaton, recently spoke to the Rotary Club of Lloydminster about the company’s history, community involvement and plans to merge with two other Saskatchewan credit unions.
Beaton attended the club’s March 24 lunch meeting and noted he was very happy to be there to speak with them.
Read more: Synergy considers merger
“I bought back a little bit of land that belonged to my grandparents and live north of town,” he said, noting he grew up in Lashburn. “I’m very privileged to talk with Rotary today.”
Synergy Credit Union was founded in 1943.
“We provide financial wealth management payments to our members across Saskatchewan,” said Beaton. “We have quite a bit of lead in Alberta being in this fine market of Lloydminster.”
The credit union has 27,000 members, 12 branches and 252 employees.
“We have $2.8 billion in assets,” he said, explaining the company’s profit-sharing model.
“Twenty per cent of profits go to our members every year,” said Beaton. “Ten per cent goes back to our employees and five per cent to our Synergy Shares program.”
The credit union also focuses on volunteering.
“Last year, our staff collectively volunteered 9,700 hours,” he said. “That’s an average of almost 44 hours per employee.”
Beaton then spoke about the proposed merger with Conexus and Cornerstone credit unions.
“This isn’t a small step,” he said. “Those that know Conexus and Cornerstone know they are two of the largest peer credit unions in Saskatchewan.”
He said the merger is necessary to meet growing challenges.
“Technology and regulatory requirements are expensive,” said Beaton. “No member wants to pay more for anti-money laundering compliance.”
He explained all three credit unions duplicate many costs.
“In technology alone, early estimates show $8 million in annual savings,” he said. “Just our banking and digital systems account for $3.5 million of that.”
Other benefits
Meanwhile, the new organization would have 57 branches in 50 communities.
“Saskatoon and Regina are the only communities with multiple branches,” said Beaton. “There is no overlap between locations.”
He emphasized the merger’s benefits for employees.
“We want to be a top employer,” he said. “Cornerstone has been named a top employer for 10 years, and Synergy for eight.”
Beaton also said staff would have better career opportunities.
“We had a great team member leave for Federated Co-op because we only had one job in their field,” he said. “This merger could give employees more career steps.”
However, he also stressed the importance of retaining talent.
“One of our marketing team members moved to New Brunswick,” said Beaton. “She has 10 years of service, and I didn’t want to let her go.”
He said the advancement in work from home allowed the company to keep her on board.
Technology and cybercrime also remain top of mind.
“Each credit union runs about 200 different computer systems … reducing that would help employees and members,” said Beaton. “Cybercrime is a material risk … we must invest in protection.”
Meanwhile, Beaton discussed open banking, also called consumer-directed finance.
“This gives individuals more control over their data to get better deals from financial institutions,” he said. “It will help us compete against big banks.”
He said the merger would expand lending capabilities.
“A large local business borrows over $70 million on a continuous basis. We can now handle that where we couldn’t before,” he said, noting the requirement for member approval.
“Saskatchewan requires 75 per cent approval from members who vote for the merger to go ahead,” said Beaton. That is the highest requirement in any province.”
He concluded by reaffirming the merger’s benefits.
“This will increase efficiency, improve service and create new opportunities for members and employees alike,” said Beaton.
Read more: Synergy highlights economic breakfast
