Both banks and credit unions are depository institutions and offer consumers many of the same services.

A credit union is a "not for profit" corporation organization owned by its member depositors and is established solely for the benefit of its members. A Michigan state-chartered credit union operates under the authority of and receives its powers from the Michigan Credit Union Act. There are also Federally-chartered credit unions that operate under the authority of the Federal Credit Union Act and are regulated by the National Credit Union Administration (NCUA). Most credit unions are Federally insured, and Federal insurance is required for any credit union doing business in the State of Michigan.

A bank is a "for profit" corporation owned by its stockholders and is established to provide financial services to the general public. Bank deposits are insured by the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation (FDIC). State-chartered banks operate under the authority of and receive powers from the Michigan Banking Code.

A credit union can be chartered, or licensed, with state regulatory agencies or with the Federal government. This determines what regulations a credit union will operate under and who its primary regulator will be. The difference between a Federal and state charter has very little impact on consumers and most people would probably not notice it. Our credit union locator is a directory of Michigan state-chartered credit unions.

If your credit union is chartered by the State of Michigan, the toll-free number for consumer complaints is 1-877-999-6442.  Problems with credit unions chartered in other states should be discussed with that state’s financial institutions regulator.  The regulator can usually be found on the state’s website.  You can also find a list of state regulators on the National Association of State Credit Union Supervisors website at NASCUS .

Complaints about Federally-chartered credit unions should be directed to the National Credit Union Administration (NCUA).  Michigan is part of NCUA Region I, and the telephone number for that office is 1-518-862-7400.  Region I ’s website is http://ncua.gov/AboutNcua/org/Region1.htm.  The NCUA also maintains an anonymous fraud hotline at 1-800-827-9650.

Generally, the rate that may be charged is the rate permitted in the financial institution's home state. This is determined by either that state's statutory code, or by the State Financial Institutions Department that has chartered the bank or credit union. A Michigan State-chartered depository institution may charge whatever interest rate the institution and the customer agree to.

There are two authorities that charter credit unions in Michigan. They are the Office of Financial and Insurance Regulation (OFIR) in Lansing, Michigan, and the National Credit Union Administration in Albany, New York. The OFIR Enterprise Monitoring and Insurance Examination Division has prepared a credit union organization package that can be viewed on our web site at www.michigan.gov/ofir. The organization package can also be mailed to an interested party upon request.

In addition, the two Michigan credit union trade associations are helpful when seeking credit union organization information. The trade associations are the Michigan Association of Credit Unions, Bay City, Michigan, and the Michigan Credit Union League, Livonia, Michigan.

The telephone numbers for each of the organizations are:

After the proposed changes have been reviewed and approved, OFIR will forward the amendment forms to the credit union. Most credit unions' bylaws address approval of amendments in Article XVII. The credit union must provide the proposed bylaw amendment and notification of voting to either the membership or board of directors as specified in Article XVII. The signed forms must be returned to OFIR, and must have final approval from OFIR prior to the bylaw amendment becoming operative.

If your credit union is absorbing or merging into a Federally-chartered credit union, merger applications must be filled out for both OFIR and the NCUA. If two Michigan state-chartered credit unions are merging, then only a single merger package is necessary, but a copy should be sent to the NCUA at the same time.

Merging a state-chartered credit union into a state-chartered credit union from a different state can be very complicated due to possible differences in state laws, and you should call our office to discuss the matter.

The merger application should be filed with our office as soon as possible so that it may be analyzed and a decision reached prior to the proposed merger date. A minimum of 45 days should be allowed. You should be careful to include all the needed items in the merger package, as additional requests from our office will delay the process.

Our office will review and analyze the merger package and the examination reports to reach a decision. If approved, the credit unions have 60 days to merge; however, if the planned merger date is later, a credit union may request an extension of time to complete the merger.

After the merger has taken place, the surviving credit union must supply written notification of the completion of the merger and submit a balance sheet reflecting the combined credit union's financial condition as of the merger date. After our office receives the combined balance sheet, a final Certificate of Merger will be issued. At this time, the surviving credit union should also request modification of Article III of its bylaws to reflect the addition of the merged credit union's field of membership, if necessary.

As of the effective date, the new title must be used on all signage, forms, documents, letterheads, checks and other material issued by or identifying the credit union. Your depository bank, bonding company and other creditors should also be advised of the name change.