FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
March 2, 2021
Washington, DC

The Credit Union National Association (CUNA) unveiled today Financial Well-Being for All, a movement-wide effort to amplify and quantify how America’s credit unions are working to improve the financial state of their members and to encourage them to more obviously integrate financial well-being into their corporate strategies.

According to the Financial Health Network, 167 million people in America are struggling financially. Credit unions are uniquely positioned to address this challenge due to their core mission, affordable products, and member-centric service model.

As an initial step, CUNA Board yesterday approved the following unity statement to articulate the shared commitment among America’s credit unions, Leagues, and CUNA which will ultimately become a larger, coordinated effort:

Financial well-being is the state of a person’s financial situation, their degree of control, and how they feel about their money.

Improving people’s financial well-being is at the heart of the mission and structure of America's credit unions. The essence of this commitment is reflected in each institution's bylaws and it’s something credit unions have been doing for more than 100 years.

On behalf of America’s credit unions, our shared commitment is to continue to accelerate the vital work of improving financial well-being for all and advancing the communities we serve.

“When you think about financial well-being, I want to challenge the movement to go even deeper,” CUNA President/CEO Jim Nussle said at the CUNA Governmental Affairs Conference (GAC).  “We need to back up our stories with facts and data that paint a clear picture of the difference you’ve made in people's lives; the jobs you’ve saved, the paychecks you’ve protected, and the houses you’ve kept people in. By literally showing our work, by quantifying our impact at the local, state, and national levels, we will demonstrate that credit unions are truly focusing on the needs of its members.”

State and federal policymakers want evidence that credit unions are fulfilling their mission. The system-wide unity statement is designed to encourage credit unions both communicate and measure the impact they have in their members’ lives.

Read more conference coverage from CUNA News, and get live updates on Twitter via @CUNANews, @cumagazine, @CUNA, and by using the #CUNAGAC hashtag. You can also follow the conference on Facebook and Instagram. For a complete schedule and information on keynote speakers and breakout sessions, visit the CUNA GAC event page. 

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About CUNA:           
Credit Union National Association (CUNA) is the only national association that advocates on behalf of all of America’s credit unions, which are owned by 120 million consumer members. CUNA, along with its network of affiliated state credit union leagues, delivers unwavering advocacy, continuous professional growth and operational confidence to protect the best interests of all credit unions. For more information about CUNA, visit cuna.org. To find your nearest credit union, visit YourMoneyFurther.com.

CONTACT:
Lauren Williams
CUNA Communications
202-672-3396