Local banking matters: A new form of “social responsibility”

“Social responsibility” is a term that’s commonly understood in relation to topics like environmental mindfulness.  However, its recent reach has gone far beyond that, extending to other issues that directly impact U.S. consumers, their communities and their wallets…specifically, to an area of consciousness called “socially responsible banking.”

Local banking better for consumers and communities

For years, consumers have been told that only big banks can provide the rates and products they’ve come to expect from banking.  It is now becoming obvious that this is untrue.  In fact, many community banks and credit unions offer free checking accounts, provide nationwide ATM fee refunds and have no minimum balance requirements to maintain the accounts. Over 150 community financial institutions across the country offer Kasasa checking accounts, which actually offer rewards like high-yields.  Fifty community banks and credit unions featured on Kasasa.com currently offer interest rates earning at least 50 times higher than that of the national average, according to the FDIC website. 

In addition to saving more money, consumers can feel good about banking locally because in doing so they are fueling local community growth—something consumers are becoming more passionate about as they look for ways to make an impact in their own towns. Moreover, community banks and credit unions provide more than 60 percent of small business loans between $100,000 and $1 million, according to a study conducted by the Independent Community Banker’s of America (ICBA).  

To reinforce the importance of local banking, this Wednesday and Thursday, community banks and credit unions will be picking up the tab at gas stations around the country to personally pump free gas for local residents as part of a nationwide “Take Back Your Banking” initiative. It’s their way of displaying a sense of community and personal touch that megabanks famously lack while also educating consumers on a better way to bank.

Bolstering the national economy

The act of banking locally also has a bottom-line impact on the U.S. economy.  With literally thousands upon thousands of community banks and credit unions operating across the U.S., the ripple effect of local financial institutions supporting communities is undeniable.  Roughly 1,750 community banks have served their communities for over 100 years according to the ICBA, meaning they have helped build the American economy for over a century.

Consumers have the power to choose

The bottom line is, banking locally matters, and it is a movement that merits greatly increased attention.  Consumers deserve to understand the weighty influence their support of local banks has on their wallets, their communities and the nation as a whole.  As a resource, they can use Kasasa.com, to find community banks and credit unions that offer the types of benefits the community banks and credit unions are committed to:  higher interest with no minimum balance requirements to earn the rate, and the convenience of refunds on ATM fees nationwide.

There’s no doubt that there are many Americans who still support banks that operate from the “Too Big to Fail” foundation—change is difficult, after all, and these megabanks pour millions of dollars into marketing while reinvesting consumers’ deposits primarily in ways that improve their own bottom lines.  However, now more than ever, consumers are being shown the reality—that the benefits of socially responsible banking can be far more rewarding for everyone involved and that changing to banking locally, is well worth it.