AURORA, Ill.-Several credit unions are gearing up to participate in the latest "Bank On" program: Earthmover CU and Fox Valley CU .
Following in the footsteps of the city of Rockford, Aurora has adopted the Bank On Illinois program that is aimed at bringing the "unbanked" and "underbanked" into the mainstream financial services fold.
The state of Illinois kicked off the program after seeing similar successful programs in other cities and states across the country, most notably the Bank On San Francisco program that launched in 2006.
To participate in Bank On Illinois, financial institutions must offer free or low-cost checking and savings accounts, "second chance" accounts for people with negative histories and accept tax identification numbers, Matricula Consular and other foreign IDs in place of Social Security Numbers.
The Bank On Aurora program will officially launch April 1 with the goal of signing up 1,200 individuals over the next year.
