Bank Transfer Day Pushes 40,000 To Join Credit Unions, Survey Finds

Tens of thousands of Americans joined credit unions on Saturday, as the Bank Transfer Day movement encouraged consumers to move their money out of big banks.

Credit unions raked in 40,000 new members Saturday, the culmination of a social media push known as Bank Transfer Day, according to a survey from the Credit Union National Association. Eighty percent of larger credit unions signed up new members on Saturday, the survey reports, and credit unions overall added $80 million in new savings account funds Saturday.

The weekend capped a surge in new membership that lasted more than a month. At least 650,000 customers joined credit unions between September 29 -- the day Bank of America announced it would charge customers $5 to use their debit cards for purchases -- and the first week of November, according to a separate CUNA survey. That's more than joined credit unions in all of 2010.

The Bank Transfer Day push touched a nerve with consumers who were fed up with banks charging fees for once-free services. One-third of customers said in a survey last month that they would leave their bank if it started charging a debit card fee. Many banks ultimately back tracked on proposed charges after witnessing the consumer outcry.

Bank of America dropped its plan to charge the fee earlier this month, after customers, lawmakers and even President Obama derided the bank. Wells Fargo, JP Morgan Chase and other regional banks also scrapped plans to charge debit card fees last month, according to the Wall Street Journal.

Consumers' decisions to leave the banks boosted credit unions across the country. In Los Angeles, hundreds marched on the city's financial district Saturday and dozens transferred their money on the spot. Officials from Florida-based Space Coast Credit Union told the Daytona News Journal that the credit union saw a 10 percent boost in phone calls on Saturday compared to a regular weekend.

Nearly 90 percent of credit unions in Maine said they saw an increase in customers between October 1 and Saturday's Bank Transfer Day deadline, according to the Lewiston Sun Journal. In Missouri, more than 7,100 consumers switched to credit unions in the six weeks leading up to Bank Transfer Day, according to Patch.

But the largely local non-profit credit unions aren't the only ones seeing a boost from consumer frustration with banks. More customers have also started using financial services at Walmart since Bank of America announced the debit card fee, The New York Times reports.

Comments

[TrutherUSA]

12:32 PM on 11/11/2011

This effort needs to continue. As more and more people switch to local banks and credit unions the too big to fail banks will get smaller, until they are no longer too big to fail. That will be good for the future economy. Once they are to small to be a problem they become to small to buy politicians and that is a huge benefit for all of us. Switch today!!

[intolleft]

08:21 AM on 11/11/2011

The woman in the picture above should be in front of the Capital building protesting those who actually stole the money.

[swengnikaerb]

11:56 AM on 11/11/2011

Congress did not steal my 401 k. Wall street did.

[intolleft]

12:09 PM on 11/11/2011

All your eggs in one basket where they? Of course that's someone elses fault.

Pity.

[MB1East]

08:26 PM on 11/10/2011

If you think about it, it all comes down to product, right? Who do you want managing your money? A local credit union that is not for profit, or a massive bank that will take your money, invest it in high risk pursuits, become too big too fail, require your tax dollars to bail them out, and then come back and jack your fees up on you. To me, I prefer to go with the local credit union. Sure, I lose access to thousands of ATMs. But if I plan ahead I can manage my cash needs without having to use an out of network ATM. The better product gets my business. And if the big banks lose all of their customers, then they will need to find away to win them back. Or go out of business. It's not my problem if I don't like what they are selling.

[Napoleon3]

07:36 PM on 11/10/2011

You guys have fun when you are looking for ATM machine from your credit union or transfer money from person to person. The big banks are laughing at you because the biggest profit center for them is ATM fees from non customers. I think if you keep it up I am buying Bank of America stock.

[MB1East]

08:20 PM on 11/10/2011

I can easily use local ATMs from my credit union and avoid non-network ATMs. There was a time, believe it or not, when ATMs did not exist. Nothing wrong with banking a bit smarter and simply planning ahead. Just knowing my money is not feeding some billionaire bonus is totally worth it.

[njgal4obama]

08:49 PM on 11/10/2011

You do that.

Most intelligent people don't waste their time on penny stocks.

Look for BAC to be delisted from the Dow 30 soon.

[Monk2001]

01:43 PM on 11/10/2011

Who're the dolts using Walmart? They're no different then the big banks.

[smiththomas]

12:07 PM on 11/10/2011

This is the way. Not over regulation

[Monk2001]

01:43 PM on 11/10/2011

Totally.. Over regulation of banking institutions was/is the problme? You're just wrong. We need MUCH stronger regulation. And in fact should break up the 6 largest banks in this country under the Sherman Anti Trust Act.

[1oldhippie]

11:52 AM on 11/10/2011

99 to one are GREAT odds! Proud to be part of that 40,000 that moved their money on Saturday!
POWER to we the people!

[Drew Sargent]

11:34 AM on 11/10/2011

Hosanna! If our government won't serve justice in light of the bank corruption, We the People will.

[liarfire]

10:50 AM on 11/10/2011

The BANKERS control the politicians as means to exploit our money but we control how we spend and use our money..they have convinced all of us to worship their system and their system has been cleverly designed to extort from the people. What many do not realize this was a long term strategy....it was cleverly designed psychologically to convince you to voluntarily comply and worship..they sold you this idea that your human value is determined by a credit score.. and once they have you hooked on this drug that is when they up the price...

[smiththomas]

10:15 AM on 11/10/2011

This is the way the system should work

[Monk2001]

01:44 PM on 11/10/2011

With much much stronger regulation against banks also.

[MajorBlink]

09:25 AM on 11/10/2011

These deposits are leveraged at up to 30 to 1 so multiply your estimate by this factor!

[carburetor]

07:44 AM on 11/10/2011

At the rate of 650,000 customers a month, thats 7,800,000 customers in a year. If each of those customers removed $1,000 and put it in a credit union, that would be $78 Million dollars no longer in the hands of greedy bankers. Since many customers have more than $1,000 in the bank, the total could easily exceed $1 Billion in withdrawals over twelve months. Money talks... teach it how to say "Goodbye banks!"

[trespanieli]

07:36 AM on 11/10/2011

Moving money out of TBTF banks into credit unions and community banks is a GROWING trend/movement. It is not going away any time soon. And here's another suggestion. Take those credit card offers that come in the mail, tear them up and send them BACK to the banks in their postage paid envelopes.

[carburetor]

07:32 AM on 11/10/2011

Don't use any plastic on Black Friday. The banks make a fortune in transaction fees from the merchants and that's the really big day of the year. I hope it's flat and everyone pays cash or writes a check... another expensive problem for banks.

As for Bank Transfer Day... every day from now until the end of the year will work just fine!

[psnyder325]

03:17 AM on 11/10/2011

We could easily take the banks down. Simply refuse to pay credit card bills. Default against the usurious interest rates and criminal bankers. If even 20% of the nation did this, the banks would wind up in big trouble. In addition to moving all funds away from the big banks and encouraging any business or organization you're involved with to do the same, simply stop paying them. They'll send you to collection, etc., but, in the end, there is little they can do if there is a massive refusal to pay.

[forestnfama]

05:36 PM on 11/10/2011

A SIMPLE SOLUTION Fanned

[Napoleon3]

07:56 PM on 11/10/2011

Nice . We then all live in tents at your Occupy Wall street and trade with chickens. Way to show them. Let's stop using oil while we at it.

[indep thought]

12:23 AM on 11/22/2011

I sold both my cars and now use public transportation.

Awesome idea, Napoleon!