Finance committee  We are the largest system. One in three British Columbians is a member of a credit union. Your three largest credit unions—Vancity, Coast Capital Savings, and First West Credit Union—were among the five largest in Canada and are based here.

Finance committee  One of the main ways that we do that is just being here. We work very carefully, very well, in small towns, particularly First West Credit Union. We don't have any branches, for instance, in Vancouver or Burnaby. We work in small towns. We're in Keremeos, we're in Lumby, we are i

Finance committee  I don't have those numbers with me. I'd be happy to provide them to the committee.

Finance committee  It was about $40 million for the system.

Finance committee  I think one of the biggest issues we face in particular is when it comes to taxation. While credit unions are sometimes lumped in with banks, there are those very foundational differences in terms of how we raise capital. Ours comes from our retained earnings. As I mentioned, the

Finance committee  Good morning, Mr. Chair, and members of the committee. My name is Ron Dau, and I am joined by my colleague, Alicia Swinamer. We are from First West Credit Union, and thank you very much for giving us time with you today. First West is a financial co-operative with deep roots in