Special Committee on Cooperatives committee  I haven't heard a lot, other than one particular credit union in B.C. I think for the one service credit union in Alberta that possibly would entertain this, one of the things they cherish quite significantly is the 100% deposit guarantee by the provincial government for any depo

Special Committee on Cooperatives committee  I'd say that on a system-wide basis. But as a specific credit union in central Alberta, where we're in 12 rural communities, we're not experiencing growth right now. The unfortunate part of that is that we serve five communities that have no institution in town, and we're finding

Special Committee on Cooperatives committee  Locally, at our own credit union, yes, we have a budget set up to educate our members and potential members within our communities about who we are. It's a very difficult task, especially with non-members, to engage them and have them start to garner a better understanding. So it

Special Committee on Cooperatives committee  Yes, we do.

Special Committee on Cooperatives committee  Yes, we would.

Special Committee on Cooperatives committee  I think competition will drive that creativity or innovation. With respect to Desjardins, they are a very significant credit union in Canada and have substantial resources to be as innovative as they are. They're very cohesive in that aspect. I think that's one of the downfal

Special Committee on Cooperatives committee  From a regulatory perspective, we wouldn't be able to sustain our business model in a deficit position. We have capital requirements that are actually increasing because of Basel III. We're held to those same standards in most aspects. So, no, we wouldn't be able to run a deficit

Special Committee on Cooperatives committee  I think from the credit unions' perspective, and certainly from a smaller credit union's perspective, we're there to serve our local membership. We're not out in world markets trying to be creative or what have you. We understand our markets that we operate in very intimately.

Special Committee on Cooperatives committee  The one area that I'd suggest we're different from banks is that we are locally owned by members in our communities. We're locally governed by several of those members; in our case it's nine directors on our board. We turn around and invest every dollar that we make right back in

Special Committee on Cooperatives committee  Very much so. From the perspective of education, and then if there are grant programs available to assist some start-up co-ops, I think those are really two fundamental purposes that the federal government could review or look at.

Special Committee on Cooperatives committee  I do, and to the degree, I'm not quite sure. I'm probably not the right person to ask that question of, but I could certainly table that and bring back a better response for you.

Special Committee on Cooperatives committee  Initially, start-up co-ops' understanding of proper governance would be the first place they could certainly improve and benefit from in that regard. Then, just as a case, by way an example, if you look at a housing co-op, they're typically looking for some type of funding to ass

Special Committee on Cooperatives committee  Just to note, the credit union system holds 5%, Farm Credit Canada 25% , and the other two provincial crown corporations 20%.

Special Committee on Cooperatives committee  I think our experience with Farm Credit Canada is more that they are out there actively seeking new business and they're approaching our members. They're offering some incredible deals, 10-year terms, at fixed rates, below market rates, with 100% financing. We just cannot with th

Special Committee on Cooperatives committee  They exist. I certainly wouldn't deny that. They're not as profound or as substantial as what I might suggest our counterparts in the chartered banks may be privileged to receive, but they do exist. It's based, typically, on the performance of the credit union and how well it has