What Access merger means for Casera members

Transcona

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This article was published 17/01/2024 (689 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

Changes are coming for Casera Credit Union members, beginning this February.

On July 1, 2023, Casera legally merged with Access Credit Union. Casera, which was founded in 1951 to serve employees of the Canadian National Railway’s Transcona shops, has since begun the process of rebranding under Access Credit Union’s name and marks. Members of Casera can expect changes to their accounts beginning this February, and I’ve looked into what will change.

All pre-existing Casera accounts will adopt the fee table and naming conventions established by Access Credit Union. For example, members using Casera’s no-monthly-charge “Maximizer chequing” accounts will be converted over to the Access equivalent – a no-monthly-charge “Pay-As-You-Go Chequing” account. Both accounts charge fees for each use of cheques or debit cards, online bill payments, in-branch withdrawals, and for sending Interac e-transfers, with Access charging slightly higher fees across the board, except on e-transfers, which cost $1 in either account, and ATM withdrawals, which are free for Access members. Casera will also stop providing monthly interest payments to members’ chequing accounts once the Access packages come into effect.

Casera members may notice an overall increase in fees on their chequing accounts, but members with savings accounts may notice some relief: Where four of the seven non-registered savings accounts at Casera have monthly fees ranging between $8 and $20, the equivalent Access savings accounts don’t charge flat monthly fees, and many of the converted accounts will collect higher interest rates under the Access banner. Comparing Casera’s “Plan 24” and the Access “Daily Savings” equivalent does show that Access charges higher fees than Casera on the whole, but Access also offers five free withdrawals (taking out cash, paying bills, or using your debit card) each month, compared to the Casera account, which only offers three free withdrawals.

According to Access Credit Union, mergers such as this “achieve greater efficiencies and long-term financial resilience by eliminating duplicated costs and taking advantage of more economies of scale” while also increasing the number of branch locations, which Access believes will provide more convenience for members and more opportunities for employees to advance in their careers “thanks to an increased variety of positions and more specialized roles.”

Access Credit Union was incorporated in 2021 following a merger with Crosstown Civic Credit Union. In 2022, Access merged with Noventis and Sunova Credit Unions. Amaranth, Carpathia, and Casera credit unions are the most recent institutions to join Manitoba’s largest credit union.