Newbridge Credit Union Bailed Out

Its getting harder and harder to look at the tricolour with any sense of pride. Same old bullcrap is going to keep happening time and time again.

Raging_Ninja wrote: »

There is, look what happened.

Kinda my point. Your sarcasm meter needs calibrating.

Raging_Ninja wrote: »

I think you misunderstood my original argument. I was saying it was a good thing that the govt stepped in and explained the consequences of what could have happened if it hadn't.

What consequences? As far as I am aware aren't the deposits of the members guaranteed up to €100,000.

You would be an utter fool to have more than €100,000 lodged with a CU.

peppa 1986 wrote: »

Is somebody's head going to roll for the way this credit union was run. Surely somebody needs to be accountable...giving out development loans is and never was the role of the credit union. Why was the credit union allowed to do this...accountability..audit roles...regulation..why was this allowed to happen

Is that you Mr. Potter? Why George Bailey is a good man! Without him I wouldn't have been able to afford my mansion in Naas. And what about you Peppa, would you be able to afford that Lexus if it wasn't for George Bailey?

And his brother was a war hero to cap it all off.

MadsL wrote: »

So €54m now, then the next one fails, and the next...there are 408 CUs in Ireland. Tick Tock.

I suspect there's a few more ready to be caught out and I'd keep an eye on CUDA members more so than ILCU members.

NBCU was rather unique and not in a good way as we have found out. From my own experience during the good times, the had a vicious appetite for growth and power. Considering the board was voluntary, this made it a little scary. The new premises were built in the 90s on this upward growth trend. It was up there with the most impressive CU buildings that I've ever been in. So I wasn't surprised to see a massive extension being added to it. IMO it wasn't a status symbol for the Credit Union, it was a status symbol for some members of the board and perhaps the manager too. Many members saw no reason for it. There was no reason for it as far as I could see. The original building was more than ample.

An arrogance crept into that Credit Union and effectively it was becoming a bank, but being run by amateurs. I have absolutely no doubt whatsoever that it was becoming a dangerous renegade within financial circles. As far back as 2003 it was known that they were shifting some big big loans out. Some of its AGMs were very lively and there was always an air of them and us between the board and members. I know this sounds a little juvenile, but the phrase I would assert to NBCUs board of directors is powertrip. That is based on my dealings with them as a member and business person at the time. I ceased to be a member in early 2008.

In 2003 I made a complaint to the then Registrar of CUs in the Financial Regulators office. He was useless, absolutely useless. In one way I'm glad to see the place has run aground, but I feel for members. I rather see the real truth come out about how that board of directors ran the place.

A badly run business?
Here, have 54 million taxpayers money.

Wonder did the board of Newbirdge Credit Union say to the governent "you have the moolah, we want it, so give it to us. When will you start doing this?"

Well, that was the starting point of the conversation.

The people responsible here are the board of directors, supervisory committee and manager they are the people who got it wrong and badly wrong.
Saw in the News the size of the building complete nonsense it say a lot about the directors of that place.

I wonder what Imelda May thinks of the whole thing.

MadsL wrote: »

Right at the start of the banking crisis Postbank were allowed to quietly die...

The Govt missed a perfect opportunity to support a small nationally networked operation, with transfers of performing loans and small business credit, plus stimulus money and simply let Anglo et al go feck themselves.

Instead Postbank was allowed to fail.

Aye, you were on about them before. It was foreign owned, paying An Post money to use their network, can't really see how your idea would work, transferring performing loans and providing small businesses credit.

K-9 wrote: »

I suppose if they let it go people would rightfully be pointing out that Anglo, AIB and the rest were saved.

I haven't read much detail on this but if Grandeeod is correct on how the CU was run, I can't imagine that much benefit in propping it up. I suppose it's a perfect example of how, even supposedly small financial institutions lost the run of themselves.

I can remember warnings about Credit Unions loaning out sums way above €20,000, which IIRC was considered the maximum CU loan limit back in the day before people lost the run of themselves. The Central Bank warned the CU's and banks way back around 1998 about people getting CU loans to finance house deposits, nobody seemed to give a bollicks.

I would be very correct about this particular CU. Funnily enough I was originally a member of Naas CU. Here's what happened.

Over the course of many years I built up a great relationship with Naas CU. I was happy enough. However I entered into a business arrangement with Newbridge CU circa 2000. Through my experience, I noted that NBCU felt very competitive towards Naas CU. One has to remember that these two towns are close, but one is officially the "county town". I experienced a lot of anti Naas CU talk in NBCU and was encouraged to transfer my account. I did and all on the basis that they could lend me more money than Naas CU. This is fact. So I transferred a considerable account to Newbridge CU. I was also involved in a business arrangement with NBCU and it was agreed that this business arrangement was the means to repay the loan that was transferred from Naas CU and subsequently topped up more than once. In 2003 NBCU became very adverse towards me. It seemed like their policy had changed and I was now a redundant asset as loans became geared towards the property market. They dispensed of my services (despite it being the basis of the loan repayment) and subsequently called in the loan. It was a very messy period and that was when I got first hand experience of the attitude of the board of directors.

Happily for me I was able to clear my loan in 2008 in one lumpsum payment. I have had no dealings with them since and Im glad. My situation is a very tiny example of how they did business. I was only dealing in 5 figure sums. But to sum it up, they sucked me away from another CU, poured money in based on a service I was supplying to them and then spat me out when they saw fit. But not once did it occur to them that by taking away the business, the loan was in trouble. I was chased and chased for the loan balance. This was in 2004! as Ireland was riding high on the property bubble.

I can honestly say they are a very very very dodgy set up. I owe them nothing. I settled my debt honourably, but they put me out of business once the bigger fish came into play. The place was like a big bank run by local people spaced out on a powertrip. I really can't put it any other way.

Apologies for the long post.

driver02 wrote: »

The people responsible here are the board of directors, supervisory committee and manager they are the people who got it wrong and badly wrong.
Saw in the News the size of the building complete nonsense it say a lot about the directors of that place.

You are quite correct. But the previous registrar of CUs has also a role to play.

Brendan Logue.