State CU Bid Could Be TIP Of TheIceberg

MINNEAPOLIS, Minn. - (10/08/04) -- The Star Tribune Employees CU, oneof the few single-sponsor credit unions, has applied to stateregulators to expand to a TIP (tradewide, industrywide orprofessionwide) charter to serve all people working in theinformation media profession throughout the state of Minnesota.While eight federal credit unions have obtained TIP charters fromNCUA, which created the new charter type last year, this isbelieved to be the first TIP request by a state charter. DanChristiansen, president of the $38 million credit union, said adeclining membership base at their chief sponsor, one of theregion's two main daily newspapers, has prompted the move to expandfield of membership. And a TIP, rather than community charter,would allow them to retain some sense of common bond. "I don'tthink a community charter is for every credit union. It may not bepart of their DNA," Christiansen told The Credit Union Journal. Hesaid the credit union has lost about 500 members over the last twoyears and now has 6,000 members.