UCU Annual General Meeting

 

UCU hosted its 77^th Annual General Meeting on April 20th as a virtual Zoom event - following the guidelines set by Ontario's Chief Medical Officer of Health to ensure community safety as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic.

Yaroslaw Borys, UCU Board Chair, and Taras Pidzamecky, UCU CEO, presented the annual report which showed strong financial results despite the volatility set off by the pandemic. They revealed 2020 was a year of healthy growth, solid results and prudent increases in reserves that will serve to mitigate pandemic related uncertainties ahead.

Thank You to Our Employees

On behalf of UCU Members and the Board of Directors, a heartfelt appreciation was extended to all UCU employees who kept Branches open as an essential service – in particular the Branch staff who interacted directly with the public and meticulously followed health and safety protocols to keep Members, themselves and their families safe.

Many UCU staff had to take on new responsibilities to serve Members remotely through the expanded Call Centre. They helped Members navigate UCU’s digital landscape of online and mobile app banking to minimize the need to visit a local Branch.

2020 Financial Highlights

In 2020, UCU continued to grow and its underlying financial performance remained stable. Assets increased over $67 million, deposits grew just over $56 million and loans to Members increased by more than $40 million.

Long before the pandemic, UCU put into place a careful asset-liability management plan. This plan coupled with stronger revenues from Wealth Management, creditor insurance and service fees, resulted in an overall increase in total revenue for 2020.

Credit Report

UCU did not experience a year-over-year spike in loans written off – but Management was careful to set aside sufficient loan reserves to take into account possible fallout from the once-in-a-century social and economic turmoil brought on by the pandemic.

UCU indicators for credit risk and delinquent loans in 2020 remained well below that of the credit union sector overall.

COVID-19 Response

UCU was able to support Business Members through the administration of 170 CEBA loans totaling over $6 million. Management also implemented a successful loan deferral program to assist borrowing Members who were negatively impacted by the pandemic.

UCU increased its Call Centre capacity by four times and extended Call Centre hours to grow this service channel to help our Members discover the convenience and safety of doing their banking from home.

Sharing Our Co-Operative Success

One of UCU’s core values - Building Community - did not take a break during the pandemic when assistance was needed more than ever. UCU supported more than 130 organizations with donations and sponsorships in 2020 - maintaining the lion’s share of previous years’ community support in place despite the uncertainty and tighter economic conditions brought on by COVID-19.

2020 Annual Report

The full 2020 Annual Report, including the Audit Committee report, report of the Independent Auditor and summary consolidated statement of financial position can be found on the UCU website.