Skip to main content

2018 Highlights

NACUFOK 2018 Highlights of International Relations

July 2018WOCCU Conference and Board of Directors Meeting

The 2018 WOCCU Conference and General Meeting were held at the Suntec Singapore Convention Center, during a period of four days starting July 15th. The conference was attended by 1,500 people from 58 countries.

Over the four days, over 20 subjects such as blockchain technology, employee recruiting and retention strategies, the fin-tec era, leadership and prospects of the digital economy, were discussed during keynote and breakout sessions.

This year’s conference was particularly focused on the survival strategy of credit unions in the digital financial era, where issues such as fintech and blockchain have become more important than ever. Around 30 people from Korean Credit Unions participated in the conference.

Meanwhile, Chair and President Younsik Kim, the only Asian WOCCU director, attended the 2018 WOCCU General Meeting, which was held between July 12 and 13, and represented the view of Asian Credit Unions. Mr. Kim commented, "As one of the leaders of both Asian and Global Credit Unions, NACUFOK will strive to make a better future for the global society by sharing our success story.”

August 2018Korean Credit Union and Japanese Credit Cooperative Representative Meeting

On August 8th, the representatives of NACUFOK and The Shinkumi Federation Bank (Zenshinkumiren) of Japan, met in Tokyo, Japan.

The meeting was meaningful in that the two parties were able to seek opportunities for development and exchange, based on better mutual understanding between them. The meeting also contributed to leading The Shinkumi Federation Bank towards participation in the global credit union movement.

Currently, The Shinkumi Federation Bank is not affiliated with ACCU nor WOCCU, but are in the process of becoming affiliated with the international credit union networks.

September 2018NACUFOK Hosts Workshop for Hong Kong PCCW Credit Union Executives and Employees

In September, executives and employees of Hong Kong PCCW Credit Union visited NCUFOK headquarters and Hanwoori Credit Union.

The visitors were comprised mainly of members of the board of directors. The team learned about Korean Credit Unions and the role of the federation through a lecture on the Korean Credit Union movement. The visit to Hanwoori Credit Union also provided an opportunity for the team to develop managerial ideas that could be implemented in Hong Kong.

The Hong Kong Credit Union members showed a high interest in Korean credit unions’ lending services and relations with the government. The Credit Union league of Hong Kong(CULHK) will promote its membership in ACCU as a regular member.
September 2018ACCU Forum and Annual General Meeting

From September 13th to the 16th, NACUFOK attended the Association of Asian Confederation of Credit Unions (ACCU) Forum and Annual General Meeting, held in Manila, Philippines.

Under the theme "Rekindling Raiffeisen's Ideologies in the Heart of Every Credit Union”, the event celebrated the 200th anniversary of the birth of Raiffeisen.

The event attracted over 560 Credit Union CEOs from 22 countries, including Asia, the United States, Canada and Australia. 46 representatives from Korea attended the forum.

Aslo, at the ACCU Annual General Meeting, NACUFOK Chair and President, Mr. Younsik Kim, was appointed as the new president of ACCU.

September 2018International Raiffeisen Union (IRU) Forum and Annual General Meeting

NACUFOK attended the ‘2018 IRU Forum and AGM' in Coblenz, Germany from September 27th to the 28th.

The event was in commemoration of the 50th anniversary of IRU and the 200th anniversary of the birth of Raiffeisen. It was attended by 150 CEOs from all over the world, including Asia, Europe, Africa and South America.

In addition, NACUFOK Chair and President, Mr. Younsik Kim, was elected as one of the IRU board of directors, on behalf of Asian Credit Unions.

October 2018NACUFOK Visit from Norinchukin Research Institute Senior Economist

From October 22nd to the 24th, senior economist at Norinchukin Research Institute in Japan, Shinya Furue, visited Korea to conduct a research study on the "Korean Credit Union’s Management Strategy in Low-Economic Growth Era”.

During the three day research visit, Shinya Furue visited four primary credit unions; Jumin Credit Union, Wonju Bright Credit Union, Pulmoo Credit Union, and Yesung Credit Union.

Mr. Furue’s article will be published in February 2019, in Japanese.
November 2018NACUFOK Holds 31st Exposure Program

The 31st NACUFOK Exposure Program was held at the NACUFOK Seoul Office and Golden Light(Geum-bit) Credit Union in Jeju Island, during a period of five days from November 12th to the 16th.

A total of 16 people from Nepal, Thailand, the Philippines, Bangladesh, Japan and Canada participated in the program. The contents of the training were focused on the history and success factors of Korea 's credit union movement, the current status of NACUFOK Credit and Cooperative Insurance Businesses, and Supervisory and Deposit Protection Systems of NACUFOK. By sharing the experiences of different Asian Credit Unions, the NACUFOK Exposure Program provided an opportunity for participants to exchange information about each credit union and to strengthen the global credit union network.

In order to support the co-development of credit unions in Asia, NACUFOK has for 31 years been inviting Asian credit union leaders to share the Korean credit unions’ experiences and management practices. NACUFOK has also been providing all domestic expenses for participants, as a form of support for Asian credit unions.
December 2018NACUFOK Hosts 2nd Asian Credit Union Leadership (ACL) Program

From November 26th to December 5th, NACUFOK hosted the 2nd Asian Credit Union Leadership (ACL) Program, at NACUFOK headquarters and Seoul Tmark Grand Hotel. The ACL program is an intensive training course designed to cultivate mid-level leaders of Asian credit unions.

In this year’s program, 8 participants from 5 countries (Bangladesh, Nepal, the Philippines, Sri Lanka and Thailand) participated in the program. The program included contents such as SDGs and the development experience, public relations, and supervisory systems of NACUFOK. Participants also had the opportunity to visit various primary credit unions such as Jumin, Dongjak, and Seoul Pharmacist credit unions.

In particular, in order to complete the program, participants were required to devise individual development action plans. This enabled participants to think about the kind of individual efforts that could be made for the development of the credit union movements in each of their home countries.