Equity Credit Union in Ajax | GIC discussions | Discussion forum

At last report, that 2.25 rate was only for deposits in excess of DICO limits (including accumulating interest). The minimum could be even higher now.

Must go in person to Ajax to open a membership.

"Must go in person to Ajax to open a membership."

We recently joined this CU without a trip to Ajax. Don't know if that policy has changed.

Always call to confirm rates.

Well, a couple of weeks ago I found another source that said their one year rate for TFSA was 2% if you met certain qualifications; and I did phone them; and they said it was long expired, that they are not currently offering a one year rate that high. They referred me to their online chart.

As I recall, Cannex depends on the FIs themselves for rate updates and are not necessarily current.

$350K minimum is too steep for non-registered, IMO. It's 100K above insured limits!.
This CU has been increasing its minimums for promos by leaps and bounds over the last year or so. It went from 75k to 100k, then 250k. And now 350K?

I wanted to see the Audited Financial Statements of Equity CU but could not find them online. Could anyone tell me the link to the Statements? Always easy to find financial statements for the Banks but not for CUs. While banks may not pay "big" interest these days (but neither do CUs) banks IMO are notchs higher regarding security and better regulated than CUs which is worth something - thus more people will deposit such large amounts with banks.
I expect Equity does not want to be bothered with the little guys ($1000 here and there) if it is able to attract $350K each from a small(er) number of clients to reach its requirements - very efficiently. I would certainly not deposit that much with Equity - I would have to know much more about their financial position and stability. Their financial statements would be a good start.

Loonie said
The audited statements are not on their website as far as I know. They were made available to members beforethe AGM. Equity CU's financial position was, in my opinion, strong as of end of 2020, but it is a small one-branch CU and most members are local, so the local economy may be a significant factor.  

The financial statements are not on their website - I had already checked that. You say their financial position was strong "in your opinion" at the end of 2020 - what do u base your opinion on? Did u see or perhaps receive the financial statements?

GR said
Yes, financials available with complete annual report. See their website home page for link to AGM.
As this is a small credit union, investing above the insured maximum is at your risk.
Rates here can sometimes be negotiated.

https://equitycu.com/wp-content/uploads/2021/04/Equity-AR2021-FINAL.pdf  

Exactly what I was looking for. Thanks very much!

Loonie said

Yes, I read the financial statements at the time. I also attended the online AGM. I base my opinion on all of that.
What conclusion have you come to, now that you have seen the docs?  

These are not the complete Audited Financial Statements - these are "excerpts" as it says (assembled by Equity CU). Not complete enough for me to make any informed conclusions - e.g. the important "Notes to the Audited Financial Statements" prepared by the external Audit Firm are not included here. In the notes would be things like what comprises the $6.4M "Investments" under Assets. I was interested to know what they are investing in (I would think nothing too speculative) but that info is missing as is other useful info normally included in the Notes prepared by the independent Audit Firm.
I expect the average CU member may not have much of a financial background so the reason only "excerpts" of the Statements are posted on the site - or perhaps Equity does not want readers of their site to see the complete Audited Financial Statements with the Auditor's Report.

Equity CU 5 Year Rate Hits 2.60%

1 year 1.65%
2 year 1.85%
3 year 2.00%
4 year 2.45%
5 year 2.60%

https://equitycu.com/ecu-rates/

Equity CU is offering 2% for 1 year - with a minimum of $400K. They are obviously targeting a specific part of the market. Must be very overhead efficient if they can get say one client @ $400K rather than 100 @ $4000.