The Association of British Credit Unions Limited, commonly known as ABCUL, is the leading trade association for

credit unions A credit union, a type of financial institution similar to a commercial bank, is a member-owned nonprofit financial cooperative. Credit unions generally provide services to members similar to retail banks, including deposit accounts, provision ...

Great Britain Great Britain is an island in the North Atlantic Ocean off the northwest coast of continental Europe. With an area of , it is the largest of the British Isles, the largest European island and the ninth-largest island in the world. It is ...

. ABCUL represents around 70% of credit unions who in turn provide services to 85% of the British credit union membership. The

Irish League of Credit Unions The Irish League of Credit Unions (ILCU) (Irish: Conradh na hÉireann de Chomhair Chreidmheasa) is a trade association for credit unions in Ireland. It operates in both the Republic of Ireland and Northern Ireland. It is an unincorporated body g ...

organises in

Northern Ireland Northern Ireland ( ga, Tuaisceart Éireann ; sco, label= Ulster-Scots, Norlin Airlann) is a part of the United Kingdom, situated in the north-east of the island of Ireland, that is variously described as a country, province or region. Nort ...

on an all-island basis. Both ABCUL and ILCU are members of the European Network of Credit Unions and

World Council of Credit Unions The World Council of Credit Unions (WOCCU) is an international trade association and development agency for credit unions headquartered in Madison, Wisconsin. WOCCU aims to improve lives through credit unions and other financial cooperatives thr ...

History

In 1967, Hornsey Co-operative Credit Union and other West Indian credit unions formed the Credit Union League of Great Britain, which became the Association of British Credit Unions (ABCUL) in 1984. Separately, in 1964, Wimbledon Credit Union joined forces with two other credit unions operating from

Roman Catholic Roman or Romans most often refers to: *Rome, the capital city of Italy *Ancient Rome, Roman civilization from 8th century BC to 5th century AD *Roman people, the people of ancient Rome *'' Epistle to the Romans'', shortened to ''Romans'', a lette ...

churches in

Highgate Highgate ( ) is a suburban area of north London at the northeastern corner of Hampstead Heath, north-northwest of Charing Cross. Highgate is one of the most expensive London suburbs in which to live. It has two active conservation organisati ...

and

Hove Hove is a seaside resort and one of the two main parts of the city of Brighton and Hove, along with Brighton in East Sussex, England. Originally a "small but ancient fishing village" surrounded by open farmland, it grew rapidly in the 19th cen ...

to form the National Federation of Savings and Co-operative Credit Unions; this later became the National Federation of Credit Unions (NATFED). The federation and the league agreed in 1967 to form a single national organisation, but the project never became reality and the federation continued separately until its dissolution in 2000. In fact, the two bodies came to represent distinct factions within the early movement: ABCUL represented industrial credit unions exclusively, while NATFED affiliates were drawn from community credit unions. Furthermore, whereas ABCUL pursued a growth-orientated strategy of individual member unions achieving critical mass and market share, NATFED placed greater emphasis on self-help and expansion through the proliferation of smaller member unions. The Ulster Federation of Credit Unions, which grew out of the Northern Ireland Regional Association of the National Federation in 1995, provides an alternative to the Irish League with a distinct Ulster British identity.

Activities

In common with its member credit unions, ABCUL is registered under the

Co-operative and Community Benefit Societies Act 2014 The Co-operative and Community Benefit Societies Act 2014 (c.14) is an Act of the Parliament of the United Kingdom that received Royal Assent on 14 May 2014. Provisions According to its long title, the Act consolidates certain enactments rela ...

. It is governed by a board of directors who are elected by the members. The Credit Union Foundation Limited is a registered charity and a

company limited by guarantee In British, Australian, Bermudian, Hong Kong and Irish company law (and previously New Zealand), a company limited by guarantee (CLG) is a type of corporation used primarily (but not exclusively) for non-profit organisations that require legal pe ...

with a board of trustees consisting of the directors of ABCUL and independent trustees. As a registered charity, the Foundation's rules allow it to carry out a different but complementary role to that of ABCUL.About the Foundation
The Credit Union Foundation (retrieved 11 February 2015)

References

External links

Association of British Credit UnionsIrish League of Credit UnionsUlster Federation of Credit Unions
{{Credit Unions in the United Kingdom Banks established in 1967 Cooperative federations Credit union leagues Credit unions of the United Kingdom Companies based in Manchester Organizations established in 1967 1967 establishments in England

History

Activities

See also

References

External links