TALLAHASSEE, Fla. – Credit Union 24 announced it is disbursing cash in place of the certificates that credit unions earned during the first two years of the cooperative’s operations.
As part of CU 24’s cooperative ownership structure, shareholding credit unions earn patronage dividends and amass equity in the corporation. For the first time since CU 24 became a member-owned cooperative, the certificates earned during the first two years are being redeemed for cash due to the progress made by the organization. In previous years, the board declared dividends and paid them partly in cash and certificates, the firm said.
“Credit Union 24 regularly distributes patronage dividends to shareholding credit union participants, but retains a portion of the dividends as equity in the cooperative,” said Jim Park, CEO of CU 24. “In light of the relatively tough economic conditions the financial sector is facing, and as a reflection of Credit Union 24’s continued growth, the board has decided to begin disbursing that retained equity.”
More than 200 of CU 24’s approximately 500 credit union participants will be eligible for the equity disbursement, which totals nearly $500,000. The funds will be distributed based upon network patronage to shareholding credit unions that conducted transactions on the network in 1998 and 1999.
The equity disbursement closely follows a record $3.3-million patronage dividend for fiscal year 2007 announced in August of this year.
