State-chartered credit unions in South Carolina will now have greater access to interstate branching following a cooperative agreement that joins the Palmetto State with ten other states.
According to Robert L. Davis, commissioner of banking for the South Carolina State Board of Financial Institutions, the Southeastern Regional Cooperative Interstate Agreement aligns South Carolina with Alabama, Florida, Georgia, Illinois, Mississippi, Missouri, North Carolina, Tennessee, Texas and Washington.
Formulated in 2009, the agreement was designed to “promote fair and equitable commerce among state- chartered credit unions based upon reciprocity, subject to appropriate safety and soundness provisions, in order to best serve the consumers” of the states entering the agreement.
The agreement was developed by the aforementioned states in tandem with the National Association of State Credit Union Supervisors.
“By entering into this agreement, South Carolina is promoting interstate commerce and cooperation on a reciprocal basis among the participating states, as well as fostering parity with the federal credit union charter for South Carolina state-chartered credit unions,” said Lucy Ito, NASCUS’ president and CEO, in a statement.
Ito added that, in practice, the agreement eases the “procedural impediments” for credit unions and demonstrate “that this is a viable choice for them to extend their operations as state-chartered financial institutions, consistent with their strategic plans, should they choose to do so.”
