Desjardins Group

Desjardins Group
Cooperative
Industry Financial services
Founded 1900
Headquarters Lévis, Quebec, Canada
Key people
 Guy Cormier, President & Chief Executive Officer
Products Chequing Accounts
Insurance
Stock brokerage
Investment Bank
Asset-Based Lending
Consumer finance
Total assets C$260.7 billion 2016[1]
Number of employees
 45,219 (2013)
Website desjardins.com
A Desjardins caisse populaire in Montreal.

The Desjardins Group (or Mouvement des caisses Desjardins in French) is the largest association of credit unions in North America. It was founded in 1900 in Lévis, Quebec by Alphonse Desjardins.

Located mostly in Quebec, and in Ontario, Alberta, and New Brunswick, it is a federation of 376 local Caisses populaires Desjardins, which serves 5.8 million members.

Between 2008 and 2010, total assets at Desjardins Group grew over 15% from C$151.9 billion (when it ranked sixth in Canada and first in Quebec among financial institutions ahead of the National Bank of Canada) to over $175 billion in 2010. In 2006, it had 6,500 elected and volunteer officers and employed over 40,000 people and gave its members $483 million in patronage allocations and $64 million in donations, sponsorships and academic scholarships.[2] Most of the latter sum was used on regional economic development and health programs as well.

The Desjardins Group has over 20 subsidiaries offering products and services related to insurance (Desjardins Financial Security, Desjardins General Insurance), real estate (Place Desjardins), venture capital funds (Desjardins Venture Capital) and brokerage (Desjardins Securities). The Desjardins Group, through subsidiary Développement international Desjardins, is also active in over 50 developing countries through technical assistance programs and various investments.

Desjardins Group began large-scale expansion outside the province of Quebec in 1992 when it opened the Desjardins Bank in Florida to cater to southbound Quebecers, particularly snowbirds and retirees. This practice has also been adopted by a number of other Canadian banks. In December 2010, it acquired the 121 offices and 500,000 customers of Western Financial for $443 million giving it a presence in British Columbia, Alberta, Saskatchewan and Manitoba.[3]

In 2011, Desjardins Credit Union in Ontario merged with Meridian Credit Union.[4]

Desjardins is a member of Interac, the NYCE ATM Network, and issues house-branded Visa credit cards.

Credit agency ratings

On October 26, 2012, rating agency Moody’s Investors Service said it was reviewing the long-term ratings of the Caisse Centrale Desjardins because of concerns about consumer debt levels, housing prices, and more.[5] As of August 2013, the group's medium- and long-term debt is rated a solid Aa2/A+ or better by all major rating agencies, with a stable outlook.[6]

See also

Wikimedia Commons has media related to Desjardins Group.

References

  1. ↑ "Desjardins Figures". Dejardin Group. 31 December 2013. Retrieved 2016-11-02.
  2. ↑ "Monique F. Leroux Becomes First Woman Elected as President and CEO of Desjardins Group" (Press release). Canada NewsWire. 15 March 2008. Retrieved 2013-03-15.
  3. ↑ Noah Buhayar (24 December 2010). "Desjardins to Acquire Western Financial for $439 Million, Expand in Canada". Bloomberg Businessweek. bloomberg.com. Retrieved 2013-03-15.
  4. ↑ Barbara Shecter and John Greenwood (1 March 2011). "Meridian, Desjardins agree to merger". National Post. financialpost.com. Retrieved 2013-03-15.
  5. ↑ Jacquie McNish (26 October 2012). "Dejardins' quiet revolution". The Globe and Mail. theglobeandmail.com. Retrieved 2013-03-15.
  6. ↑ Caisse centrale Desjardins credit ratings
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