Message from the Chair -

Dear Belgian-Alliance Credit Union Members:
The board of directors is proud to declare a 2011
patronage refund of $150,000. We have also declared
a dividend on each member share account. As in the
past, the dividend rate is that of a five-year term
deposit, our highest rate of return.
Although many credit unions have discontinued
the practice of issuing patronage refunds, your board
feels that allowing our members to share in profits is
one of the cornerstones of the credit union system.
The general practice of those institutions within
the cooperative/credit union system that continue
to issue patronage is to “lock in” the monies within
patronage accounts. The release of the funds within
these accounts is determined by each institution’s
board of directors.
Our practice at Belgian-Alliance Credit Union
has been to deposit patronage refunds into member
share accounts. Over fifteen years ago, the board of
directors set a $200.00 minimum threshold for these
accounts — allowing members, if they chose, to
withdraw any funds in excess of this amount., continue reading...