American Eagle FCU's opening of a branch here has irked one local bank president so much that he placed ads in both the Journal Inquirer and the Hartford Courant, challenging the CU "to serve low and middle income people" by opening a branch in a less prosperous section of town.
"Your newest office in Vernon seems to follow a growing credit union trend to seek out 'pockets of prosperity'", the bank's ad read, asking for CUs to compete on that well-worn "level playing field."
The "open letter" from William McGurk, president of Rockville Bank, taunted AEFCU to serve downtown Rockville, where plenty of storefronts are available, and McGurk said he'd pay the first three-months rent.
The credit union's branch expansion includes new service locations in nearby Enfield and also one in Cromwell, due to open in 2007. AEFCU President William Dokas said the expansion was meant to "improve service to existing members in the area and provide room for new member growth," but it has stoked the competitive fires of the bank, which invited the CU to convert to a mutual charter in order to address what it sees as an uneven tax advantage.
American Eagle was founded in 1934 as the East Hartford Aircraft Federal Credit Union, and served Pratt employees. It changed its name in 1996. AEFCU was granted a field-of-membership approval by the NCUA in July 2006 to include residents of Hartford, Middlesex and Toland County, a potential FOM of more than 1 million members. Dokas said that the new offices "are part of our expansion plans to make the credit union more convenient and accessible to all residents and businesses" in those counties, but did not address the nastiness of McGurk's ads in the local papers.
Connecticut Credit Union Association Chairman Kevin Chandler did, however, calling it the "height of hypocrisy." Responding in kind, Chandler offered McGurk an application to become a not-for-profit credit union. "Any takers? I didn't think so," said Chandler.
"This was such a cheap shot," Chandler told The Credit Union Journal. "He seems to be spoiling for a fight, and for no good reason. He should just stick to his knitting and we'll stick to ours."
On it's website, Rockville Bank offers a "Break Up Kit" to assist consumers to switch from other banks, claiming, "breaking up isn't hard to do." McGurk also says that the bank is "here for the long pull," and "wants relationships, not hot money."
Chandler said he had no intention of wasting any money by placing ads in response, asking, "What for?"
