Michigan Joins Interstate Branching Agreement with 11 Other States

Last week, interstate branching for Michigan credit unions became more accessible when Michigan Department of Insurance and Financial Services (DIFS) Director Pat McPharlin announced the state signed a cooperative agreement with 11 other states.

Michigan joins Alabama, Florida, Georgia, Illinois, Mississippi, Missouri, North Carolina, Tennessee, Texas, South Carolina and Washington as a signatory to the Southeast Interstate Branching Agreement. Michigan previously signed on to the Midwest-Northwest Agreement, which is comprised of 11 states (Idaho, Illinois, Indiana, Kentucky, Michigan, Ohio, Oregon, Texas, Washington, West Virginia and Wisconsin). Michigan becomes the fourth state to be a party to both multistate agreements.

Both agreements were developed, with input from engaged states, by the National Association of State Credit Union Supervisors (NASCUS) — the primary resource and voice of the state governmental agencies that charter, regulate and examine the nation’s state-chartered credit unions.

“By entering into this agreement, Michigan 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 Michigan state-chartered credit unions,” said NASCUS President/CEO Lucy Ito.

The goal of the 2009 Southeastern Interstate Branching Agreement is 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 respective states that enter into the agreement, according to NASCUS.

Ito said that, in practice, the agreements ease 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.”

“Joining the Southeast Branching Agreement will be a great benefit to Michigan credit unions,” said McPharlin. “The partnerships with other states remove barriers and positions our credit unions for growth.”