Members who visited an Empeople Credit Union branch in Maine during the past few weeks may have stopped on a dime when they saw the sign on the door.
Visitors were greeted by a note informing them of the change in the credit union's policy on change: Coins will no longer be accepted in its five branches in the state beginning Sept. 1.
The decision to stop accepting coins at Empeople is not indicative of a larger trend in Maine, according to Jen Burke, head of communications and outreach for the Maine Credit Union League.
"We are not aware of another Maine-based credit union that is planning to institute a similar policy," Burke said. Empeople officials could not be reached for comment, so it is unclear if the policy also applies to the company's Illinois branches.
If a sampling of other credit union CEOs is accurate, a no-coin trend is unlikely to catch on across the industry either.
John Holt, president and CEO of Nutmeg State Financial Credit Union in Rocky Hill, Connecticut, said handling coins is no easy task for financial institutions — but it's one that the $562 million-asset credit union considers necessary.
Nutmeg State got a taste of what it was like to go without coins during the COVID-19 pandemic, when the credit union experienced a
"While all branch membership is different, I would expect pushback," Holt said of a coin moratorium. "Coin is a legal tender within the U.S., and our members would expect the ability to withdraw and deposit coins into their accounts."
Still, Holt said the cost of ordering and shipping coins cannot be overlooked. And operational efficiencies could be increased if the credit union did not have to maintain a supply of coins, he said. "Accepting coin, counting coin and auditing and inventorying coin can be strenuous on branch operations and efficiency depending on the amount," Holt said.
In fact, its standard branch footprint includes a self-serve coin counter and coin-accepting interactive teller machines.
"Having that equipment in place makes coins fairly easy to deal with for branch staff," said Aaron Goff, president and CEO of the $608 million-asset institution. "The coin counters get quite a bit of use and actually bring members into the branch where we can engage with them about other services we can provide."
Scott Wilson, president and CEO SeaComm Federal Credit Union in Massena, New York, said the $807 million-asset company has a membership that definitely uses coins.
"We have electronic coin machines in most of our retail branches, and they are heavily used," Wilson said. "The usage of this service speaks for itself, and we will continue to have coin service."
Empeople Credit Union was
Empeople earned $2.9 million through the second quarter of 2023, a 50% decrease compared with a year earlier, according to call report data from the National Credit Union Administration.
