Wal-Mart Expands CUPartnership

MIAMI - (04/26/06) – The partnership betweenWal-Mart Stores and credit unions is continuing to grow, even ascommunity banks are seeing the retail giant’s banking plansas a direct challenge. Community bankers from Iowa, Missouri,Kansas, Minnesota and North Dakota were telling the FDIC duringTuesday’s public hearings on the Wal-Mart Bank they don'tbelieve assurances that the retail giant will not open in-storebranches. At the same time, dozens of credit unions are expandingtheir Wal-Mart branching plans. Among them are Tropical FinancialCU and Dade County FCU, in south Florida, and Centra CU, inColumbus, Ind., which plans to open three new Wal-Mart branches,just a few of up to 50 Wal-Mart branches in process among creditunions. The FDIC said it will review testimony collected at threehearings, along with the Wal-Mart application and as many as 4,000public comment letters, to determine whether to approve theWal-Mart application.