Michigan State University Federal Credit Union or MSUFCU, headquartered in East Lansing, Michigan, is the largest university-based credit union in the world in membership and asset size. MSUFCU is a federal credit union chartered and regulated under the authority of the National Credit Union Administration (NCUA). A variety of financial products and services are provided by MSUFCU including deposit accounts, personal and business loans, investments and insurance. MSUFCU is owned and operated by members of the Michigan State and Oakland University communities. As of December 2016, MSUFCU has seventeen branches, a membership of nearly 230,000, and over $3.3 billion in assets.
MSUFCU has been awarded the Society for Human Resource Management (SHRM) Top 25 Medium Sized Companies to Work For in 2006 and 2007, and currently staffs over 640 employees. The credit union was also awarded the Lansing Regional Chamber of Commerce Economic Development Award in 2008, was chosen in 2008 as one of Michigan's Next Great Companies by the Michigan Economic Development Corporation, and was named one of the Principal 10 Best Companies for Employee Financial Security by the Principal Financial Group in 2003. In 2014 the National Association of Federal Credit Unions recognized MSUFCU as the Federal Credit Union of the Year and submitter of the Best Annual Report (both for institutions with assets in excess of $250 million).
History
On November 15, 1937, a petition for state charter was approved for the Michigan State College Employees Credit Union (MSCECU). MSCECU was located in the Administration Building at the Michigan State College of Agriculture and Applied Science (later, Michigan State University) and was operated out of a single desk drawer. At that time, the credit union had $3,000 in assets and 74 members.
In 1955 the State of Michigan renamed Michigan State College as Michigan State University, and MSCECU adjusted its name accordingly to Michigan State Employees Credit Union. The credit union moved to the Power House Plant on MSU’s campus the following year and continued to move around campus as its membership and assets increased.
An additional credit union branch was opened in Oakland County, Michigan in 1967 to better serve members at the nearby MSU-Oakland University. Four years later, in 1971, the credit union relocated its main office to 600 East Crescent Road in East Lansing, Michigan.
In 1978 the NCUA approved the credit union’s application for federal charter (Charter number 23279), and its name was changed to MSU Federal Credit Union. By that time, MSUFCU had grown to $40 million in assets and 29,244 members.
A branch in Okemos, Michigan was added in 1983 and was later relocated to its current location in 2003. Additional branches were also constructed in East Lansing in 1987 and on the west side of Lansing in 2003. A branch in south Lansing opened in 2005, and in the MSU Union Building on MSU’s campus shortly thereafter.
MSUFCU continues to expand, having completed construction on a brand new headquarters building in northern East Lansing in 2009. The building was constructed using green building standards and received a gold Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design (LEED) certification. The credit union opened an additional branch in downtown Lansing in April 2011.
A new branch was built on the south side of the MSU campus in March 2012, followed by a branch on Marsh Road in Bath Township in September 2012. In November 2012 the merger of MSUFCU and Eaton County Educational Credit Union was announced, effective April 2013. A branch within the Sparrow Hospital Professional Building in Lansing opened in January 2013. Construction began on MSUFCU's Meridian Crossing branch, located on the corner of Jolly and Okemos Roads, in May 2014. MSUFCU's Mason branch opened its doors on September 2, 2014.
In January 2014 MSU Federal Credit Union became the official credit union of Oakland University and rebranded as Oakland University Credit Union, adding an on-campus branch in the student center and several ATMs throughout campus. In November the credit union announced a $46 million, 186,350 square feet (17,310Â m2) expansion to their existing headquarters building, to house a call center, their information technology, and e-services departments. Patrick McPharlin retired as President and CEO in March 2015 after 41 years with the organization.
In April 2016 MSU Federal Credit Union merged in Clarkston Brandon Community Credit Union (CBCCU), headquartered in Clarkston, Michigan. April Clobes, President and CEO of MSUFCU said "This is an exciting time for MSUFCU as this merger will allow us to better serve our 34,000 current members who live in the counties formerly served by CBCCU..."
Membership
As is dictated by MSUFCU’s charter, membership at the credit union is limited to the following groups of individuals:
Faculty, staff and students of Michigan State University or Oakland University and their immediate relatives.
Michigan State University or Oakland University Alumni Association members. Anyone is able to join either alumni association and then become eligible for MSUFCU membership.
Those who regularly work on the Michigan State University or Oakland University campuses who are under the control of the MSU Board of Trustees or the governing body of Oakland University.
Employees of select groups or associations as determined by MSUFCU’s Board of Directors.
Immediate family members of the aforementioned eligible fields (spouse, sister, brother, parent or child).
Any individual living in the household of the above eligible fields making up an economic unit.
Members were required to pay a $1, one-time membership fee and maintain a $5 balance in a Spartan Saver deposit account. This fee and deposit represent each member’s ownership of MSUFCU. However, as of August 2016, the membership fee is no longer.
Services
MSUFCU offers products and services including various savings accounts, checking accounts, certificates, Individual Retirement Accounts (IRAs), personal loans, mortgages, Visa lines-of-credit, and business accounts and loans.
MSUFCU teamed up with Members Home & Auto Insurance in 2007 to provide home, auto and renter’s insurance to members.
MSUFCU members can perform transactions free-of-charge in person at MSUFCU’s 17 branch locations, 125 MSUFCU-owned ATMs in the Greater Lansing area, or at nearly 30,000 CO-OP Network ATMs nationwide. Live telephone assistance is available Monday â€" Saturday, and 24-hour account access is available on MSUFCU’s website (https://www.msufcu.org/) using ComputerLine, the automated MoneyLine telephone service, and the MSUFCU Mobile app.
References
External links
- Official website
- Branch Locations
- National Credit Union Administration's CU Online toolâ€"provides lots of financial and organizational details
