MADISON, WI – Desjardins Group, Canada’s largest cooperative financial institution and one of the top 10 in the world, joins the Filene Research Institute as a Gold Benefactor to help examine consumer and policy issues impacting cooperatively held organizations, their owners, and consumers.
"Desjardins serves its members so well and represents one of the most advanced examples of how cooperative finance can thrive in the modern economy," said Mark Meyer, CEO of the Filene Research Institute. “We are excited that the research aims of the Desjardins Group align so closely with ours, and we look forward to working together to chart a path for a sustainable cooperative credit union future,” Meyer said.
“Through our actions, we want to create a solid and united cooperative movement. At Desjardins we believe in cooperation. It is in our DNA. It is our past and our future,” said Monique F. Leroux, Chair of the Board, President and CEO, Desjardins Group. “Filene shares our commitment to creating projects that foster education, cooperation, and personal engagement,” Leroux added.
“It’s a testament to the cooperative nature of the credit union system that these two organizations are working closely together,” Meyer said. “This is a pleasant renewal of a relationship that began 100 years ago when Edward Filene and Alphonse Desjardins first met to discuss the future of cooperative financial opportunities. Although the Canadian and U.S. credit union systems forged different paths, today it is essential to reinvigorate our relationships so that we may more easily collaborate in the future,” Meyer said.
In 1900, after years of research and correspondence, Alphonse Desjardins created a new kind of savings and credit cooperative, the caisse populaire, inspired by the experiences of people’s banks and rural credit unions in Europe and savings banks in North America. Desjardins’ work extended into the United States, where he helped found American credit unions and came into contact with early credit union pioneers like Edward Filene.
Filene and Desjardins will work together on research and innovation projects that advance the interests of consumers and credit unions.
About Filene:
The non-profit Filene Research Institute is a consumer finance think tank serving the North American credit union system of $1.5 trillion in assets and more than 106 million members. Filene publishes objective research and fosters consumer-focused financial innovation. The Institute collaborates with leading researchers and academic institutions worldwide.