1. Comparing financial institutions

2. Credit Unions A cooperative financial institution that is owned and controlled by its members and operated solely to be a service to those members by providing lower interest rates and other financial services. Most of them offer membership and benefits to a particular group of people based on characteristics such as their profession or military service.

3. Bank (Commercial Banks) take in deposits into accounts such as savings and checking accounts and pools those funds to provide services such as credit or loans, or uses those funds to invest into markets such as mutual funds to make a profit.

4. Services provided by banks AND credit unions Checking accounts Savings accounts Credit lines (credit cards or other lines of credit) Loans (personal, home, auto., etc.) Investments (cd’s, mutual funds, etc.)

5. Differences between banks and credit unions Credit unionBank Purpose To provide financial services to members at competitive rates Profit Type of organization Non-profit cooperative (member owned) Corporation Rates Savings: generally higher Loan: generally lower Services: membership specific Savings: competitive Loan: competitive Services: Market-oriented safety Insured by NCUA (national credit union association) Insured by FDIC (federal deposit insurance company) Board of directorsVolunteer membersHighly paid stockholders