Members own it. Every member has an equal vote in how the credit union is run, and can exercise this vote at the credit union AGM. Members elect a Board of Directors, also members, to oversee the running of the credit union.
Once you satisfy the common bond criteria anyone can join a credit union.
The common bond is the factor which unites the members of the credit union - it is what members have in common. Because of the common bond, all members have the good of their community at heart; they know and trust each other. The common bond for Rathmore & District Credit Union can be seen on this map.
Yes, once you satisfy the common bond, whether that be within a community (geographical), or industrial (employment), you can have multiple credit union membership. So ,that means you can have a local credit union account where you live and a credit union account through your work (where available).
The Central Bank of Ireland regulates credit unions in Ireland. Rathmore Credit Union is affiliated to the Irish League of Credit Unions (a trade representative body for credit unions in Ireland) and regularly provides copies of financial accounts to the ILCU, as well as to the Central Bank of Ireland. Rathmore & District Credit Union also has a Supervisory Committee whose role is to protect the interests of members, and to act as independent watchdog of the credit union. Rathmore Credit Union is audited by an independently approved auditor on an annual basis.
Credit Unions in the Republic of Ireland are covered by the Deposit Guarantee Scheme which is administered by the Central Bank of Ireland. This is a scheme that can provide compensation to depositors if a credit institution is forced to go out of business. It covers deposits held with banks; building societies; and credit unions. The maximum amount a credit union member can receive under this scheme is €100,000.
The Deposit Guarantee Scheme covers:
- current accounts;
- demand deposit accounts;
- term deposit accounts;
- share accounts and deposit accounts with building societies; and
- share accounts and deposit accounts with credit unions.
In addition to this, the Savings Protection Scheme (SPS) owned and operated by the Irish League of Credit Unions is also available to proactively intervene to protect members’ savings by making available financial assistance to help any credit union which may experience difficulties.
The Savings Protection Scheme (SPS) fund currently stands at €110 million.
Credit unions operate on a ‘for people and not for profit’ basis. Any profit made after operational costs are met is returned to the members. Members own the credit union. Banks, on the other hand, are owned by shareholders. Banks exist to make profit for those shareholders, and so are profit-focused as opposed to people-focused.
The revised Payment Services Directive (PSD2) is a piece of EU legislation which entered into force in 2015. Among the primary objectives of PSD2 were:
- To protect consumers.
- To give people and small businesses the ability and choice to safely and securely share their financial data in order to get access to better financial services and products.
Being an AISP (Account Information Service Provider) means that a company can ask an individual or business for authorisation to connect to a bank account and use that bank account information to provide a service.
The service provided by an AISP is a regulated payment service.
Businesses who are AISPs are authorised to access bank account information on a ‘read only’ basis. This means that the AISP has access to the account information but will never be able to complete any transactions on your bank account.
Truelayer (Ireland) Limited is the AISP used by the Credit Union to enable Members to provide bank account information digitally, in support of loan applications. Truelayer (Ireland) Limited is registered as an Account Information Service Provider (AISP) with the Central Bank of Ireland (Institution code C433487).
If an AISP is registered in any EU member state, it can provide Account information Services (AIS) to consumers and businesses in any EU member state.
This document explains how the overall process works.
This service eliminates the effort of collecting, printing and returning bank statements to the Credit Union. Instead, your bank account information is transferred electronically to the Credit Union on your behalf (but only when you give authorisation to do so).
Your bank account data will only be used for the purpose of assessing your loan application to the Credit Union.
Truelayer (Ireland) Limited will access your account data only once (immediately after you have given authorisation).
Truelayer (Ireland) Limited will hold your bank account information on their systems for a maximum of one hour after accessing your bank account. After which, your bank account information will be deleted by Truelayer (Ireland) Limited on their systems.
Truelayer (Ireland) Limited will share your bank account information with the Credit Union (after authorisation by you) via the cloud-based loan application assessment system used by the Credit Union.
Truelayer (Ireland) Limited and Rathmore & District Credit Union Limited are two separate Data Controllers. Where Truelayer (Ireland) Limited shares bank account information with Rathmore & District Credit Union Limited it is based on consent which you provide to Truelayer (Ireland) Limited during the bank account information retrieval process to facilitate the loan application process, when you the Member authorise Truelayer (Ireland) to do so.
Truelayer (Ireland) Limited and Rathmore & District Credit Union Limited are two separate Data Controllers, therefore the Member will be able to access their rights separately with each entity. Rathmore & District Credit Union Limited’s privacy notice is available here. Truelayer (Ireland) Limited’s privacy policy is available here
As a Member, this is a new optional service offering directly for you by Truelayer (Ireland) Limited to reduce the time taken to process loan applications and to enhance the loan application process.
As a Member, this optional service is available to you directly at no extra cost.
