The Michigan Department of Insurance and Financial Services, Office of Banking has approved Credit Union Trust’s plans to establish its new limited-purpose financial institution in Farmington Hills, the organizers of Credit Union Trust announced today.
“We’re pleased and very excited to be moving forward,” says Robert Sajdak, prospective president and CEO of Credit Union Trust, as named in the application. “As we said back in July when we announced our application, now that Credit Union Trust is formally approved, once it is organized, the real work begins, and we will soon begin hiring professionals, implementing plans, and contracting for systems and services.”
Credit Union Trust plans to open late in the first quarter of 2019 and will be headquartered at 31155 Northwestern Highway.
Organized by a group of seven Michigan-based credit unions, Credit Union Trust will serve as both a Michigan limited purpose bank and a credit union service organization. It is the first such entity in the state. Credit unions were unable to directly provide fiduciary services such as trusts until a 2016 change in Michigan law. The change marked the start of the organizers’ planning.
“We know our members, the market, and the industry. We will begin immediately implementing a tightly-focused business plan to serve the needs of our founding credit union members, and all Michigan credit union members who previously had to go outside the familiar credit union family for trust services,” says Sajdak. “This is a service whose time has come, and it’s one our members need.”
There are about 5.23 million credit union members in Michigan. Baby boomers are expected to transfer $30 trillion in assets to their heirs over the next few decades, and a trust provides them a way to avoid the time and expense of probate court, as well as a way to minimize estate taxes.
“At a time when many traditional banks and trust companies are raising minimum requirements to more than $1 million dollars, Credit Union Trust is focused on serving all members and will administer a much fuller spectrum of trust accounts and balances,” says Sajdak.
The organizers are executives of the seven credit unions, which include Alpena Alcona Area Credit Union, Community Choice Credit Union, ELGA Credit Union, Frankenmuth Credit Union, Honor Credit Union, Members First Credit Union, and Team One Credit Union.
