The Community Speaks: Village Financial Is Now Arise Community Credit Union

MINNEAPOLIS--(BUSINESS WIRE)--The Association for Black Economic Power (ABEP) has announced a name change for the first Black-led community credit union in Minnesota: Arise Community Credit Union. After state and federal regulators approve its application and charter, the new credit union will find its home in North Minneapolis and serve the community and all of Hennepin and Ramsey counties.

The former name of the credit union was Village Financial Credit Union. ABEP's legal counsel urged the board of directors to consider a name change to avoid confusion with several other financial institutions currently using with the word “village” in their title. ABEP’s board of directors solicited, screened, and vetted over a dozen potential alternatives before offering the stake-holder community the opportunity to vote on the most popular options. Nearly 90 percent of online voters opted for Arise Community Credit Union.

The name-change represents another major step forward in bringing the Black-led credit union, which was ideologically birthed during the racial unrest following the murder of George Floyd, to reality. When approved, Arise Community Credit Union will be the first new state and federal chartered credit union to open in the state of Minnesota in nearly a decade.

"Next steps include pulling together the credit union's board of directors and key committees, as well as putting the final touches on the charter application documents before submitting for operational approval this fall," said Debra Hurston, executive director of ABEP.

The Minnesota Department of Commerce mandates all state-chartered credit unions to be insured by the National Credit Union Association. As such, all deposits at Arise Community Credit Union will be insured up to $250,000. People are encouraged to visit our website to find out more about Arise Community Credit Union.

ABEP's MISSION: Eliminate the pernicious effects of persistent low economic status among African Americans by (a) promoting the creation of prevention and intervention mechanisms to address systemic wealth extraction and economic disparities; (b) promoting the development of products and services to allow for the generation of wealth; and (c) promoting and providing economic alternatives to traditional practices, policies, and behaviors that sustain economic inequality.