KEMBA Financial introduces financial literacy and cyber security initiative
COLUMBUS, OH (June 18, 2019) — KEMBA Financial Credit Union is proud to announce a new education and awareness initiative called KEMBA Cares. KEMBA Cares is a three-prong approach to empowering our members, associates, and general public with financial literacy resources, product knowledge basics and cyber security tips to help them make educated decisions regarding their financial well-being.
“Financial health is so important, and it doesn’t necessarily get the attention it should in the banking industry,” said Mark Decello, KEMBA’s President & CEO. “As a not-for-profit financial cooperative, we believe it’s in the best interest of our members, general public and associates alike to have tools at their fingertips to help make the best financial decisions, ultimately improving their quality of life.”
According to a recent Standard & Poor’s Global Financial Literacy Survey, only 57% of U.S. adults are considered financially literate. Furthermore, according to a 2018 Northwestern Mutual study, 44% of people surveyed sited money as their largest personal concern. “We want to be the difference,” Decello said. “We want to do our part to help reverse these statistics so people feel comfortable taking control of their finances.”
KEMBA has partnered with two organizations aimed at providing timely and useful financial education, GreenPath Financial Wellness, which is a nationwide financial counseling and education organization, as well as EverFi, a leading education technology company. As such, various videos, worksheets and articles are available on KEMBA’s “Learning Station,” a portion of the company’s website devoted to this initiative.
“The complimentary resources available range from budgeting tools and worksheets, to learning about specific products such as auto loans and mortgages, to differences between a bank and credit union, and everything in between,” Decello said.
Likewise, KEMBA is committed to providing Cyber Security tips like teaching children to be safe online, phishing attacks, identity protection, and various common security issues that can affect every consumer. According to the Federal Trade Commission, there were 1.4 million fraud reports in 2018, most commonly fraudulent credit card account openings. Unfortunately, children and seniors are most at risk.
“It’s our goal to educate and inform so people don’t fall victim to cyber attacks that could result in financial difficulties for years to come,” said Ken Blevins, Vice President of Information Technology. “Each year scam artists and identity thieves steal billions of dollars from unsuspecting consumers, protecting KEMBA members is one of our top priorities,” he added.
KEMBA is committed not only to educating members and the general public, but is also devoted to the more than 250 associates across Central Ohio. The company has armed it’s associates with these powerful tools to ensure their personal financial success as well.
“The financial health of our associates is a top priority for us as a management team of the Credit Union,” said Shernette Henry, Vice President of Human Resources. “In an era when credit card debt has reached all-time highs and student loan debt is ever- increasing, our goal is to lessen the stress on our employees with the resources available to them,” she added.
KEMBA’s entire suite of financial education resources is available at kemba.org/learning-station, and is available for not only members, but general public as well.
About KEMBA Financial Credit Union
KEMBA offers a full range of financial services to its members, including savings, checking, retirement, investment, home, student, and auto loans,
business loans and services, and more. Established in 1933, KEMBA Financial Credit Union is the largest Central Ohio-based credit union with 12 full-service retail branches, assets of more than $2.1 billion and in excess of 130,000 members, serving residents of Fairfield, Franklin, Delaware, Licking, Madison, Logan, and Union Counties. For more information, visit kemba.org.
