Happy Halloween

Halloween is upon us. No doubt you’ll see plenty of ghouls, ghosts and monsters walking the streets tonight, but for many the biggest scare today is that of the current financial situation of Canada, and that of the Global Economy. We’ve all read the papers, and watched the news, but what does this mean for HCCU. For that we’ll go to the source and ask our CEO, Malcolm Stoffman.

Dear Member,

You have likely heard stories in the media recently about troubled financial institutions, bank failures in the United States, turbulence in the stock markets and frozen credit markets. There is little doubt, that we are in the midst of a global financial crisis of which the scale is not yet fully understood. That said, I wanted to take this opportunity to address the situation from Hamilton Community Credit Union’s (HCCU) perspective and put your minds at ease in regards to the safety and security of your Credit Union and your deposits.

HCCU is a local financial cooperative that matches the needs of local savers with local borrowers. HCCU does not currently borrow, nor do we rely on the capital markets to fund our lending obligations, all of our mortgages, loans and lines of credit are funded through the deposits of our members. We are well capitalized (in excess of regulatory and board policy requirements), highly liquid and have taken a number of steps recently to improve our risk management and lending practices. Our strong financial position and prudent lending policies position us well to weather this storm.

In addition to the strength and stability of our organization, deposits at HCCU are insured for up to $100,000 through the Deposit Insurance Corporation of Ontario*. Management and the Board of Directors at HCCU continue to monitor the financial services landscape carefully and are committed to taking the steps necessary to ensure the long-term sustainability of your Credit Union. We continue to take a prudent and conservative approach to managing the Credit Union and we are constantly aware of the trust that you put in us, every day.

If you have any questions about the safety and stability of HCCU or any other aspect of the business or the current financial crisis, I would encourage you to contact me directly at 905-529-9445 or by email at malcolm@hccu.on.ca. Thank you for your continued support of HCCU.

Sincerely,

Malcolm Stoffman
Chief Executive Officer
Hamilton Community Credit Union

*For further information on deposit insurance coverage, please ask for a brochure at the credit union, or call DICO at 1-800-268-6653or visit http://www.dico.com/.