Members,
Last night, Meridian’s Board of Directors voted unanimously in favour of a proposal by management for Desjardins Credit Union to join us under the Meridian banner.
Subject to the approval of our respective Memberships, this initiative would bring 50,000 new Members and $1.4 billion in additional assets to Meridian. It will allow us to continue to deliver financial products and services to you at competitive prices.
About Desjardins Credit Union
Desjardins Credit Union was created in 2003 to take over the Province of Ontario Savings Office and funded by the Quebec Desjardins Group, the seventh largest financial institution in Canada. Desjardins Credit Union is an independent Ontario cooperative with its own management and Board of Directors. This proposal involves only Desjardins Credit Union.
Key aspects and benefits to Meridian Members
Among the key aspects of this proposal and benefits to Meridian Members:
- Meridian Members will have access to more branches in communities we now serve, including St. Catharines and Toronto, and in other communities such as Hamilton, where we have long-term plans for expansion.
- The additional resources and expanded Membership that will result will allow us to remain competitive, develop new products and services, and communicate the advantages of our cooperative approach to delivering financial services to more Ontarians.
- Based on our due diligence analysis, Desjardins Credit Union branches will operate at a profit when they become part of Meridian.
- No Meridian employee will lose his or her job as a result of this initiative.
I have enclosed a set of Questions and Answers that provides additional details on the proposal and its benefits.
Our proven track record
We are in a good position to move forward with this proposal. We have a strong balance sheet. Our 2010 growth in residential mortgages, commercial loans, and retail and commercial deposits, outpaced the average growth of the Big 5 banks. We continued to grow and ensured that our Members had the credit they needed even during the worst of the recession.
We also have a proven track record of success. In the merger that created Meridian in 2005, we opened our doors with $3.8 billion in assets under management. We have almost doubled that, to $6.6 billion. We have used our expanded resources to develop new financial products and services for our Members.
We are confident that we will continue this track record of success with this latest initiative.
It is your decision.
As a Member, you are also an owner of Meridian. You have a right to vote on whether we proceed with this initiative. Voting will occur in your branch and on-line from Monday, March 28 to Monday, April 11. Additional information on voting and on this proposal will be available on meridiancu.ca shortly.
As we mentioned at the beginning of this letter, your Board of Directors and management unanimously support this proposal. We believe it is in the best interests of our Members, Meridian, and the cooperative movement in Ontario. We urge you to support this with your vote.
Sincerely,
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Sean Jackson
President and CEO
Meridian Credit Union
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Don Ariss
Chair, Board of Directors
Meridian Credit Union |
