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Earlier this week, the Florida Bankers Association went on the offensive by placing opinion columns in three publications including the South Florida Sun Sentinel. The column included the same old argument of how credit unions should be taxed and how “America’s hometown banks” are suffering. LSCU & Affiliates President/CEO Patrick La Pine countered the bankers with an opinion column that was posted in the Sun Sentinel on Thursday.
La Pine points out a few facts that tell the real story why community banks are struggling. In the column, La Pine writes that since 1992, the 100 largest banks have grown their market share from 41 percent to 75 percent, while community banks have lost market share from 53 percent to 19 percent. During this period, credit unions have grown their market share from 5.6 percent to just under seven percent. La Pine asks, “So who is exactly is making it tough on America’s hometown banks?”
The column also makes mention of the fact that the top 25 banks in Florida control 75 percent of the deposits in the state and 75 percent of total bank deposits in the state are in banks headquartered outside of the state. La Pine also mentions the money credit unions save their members and the good works that many of them do because they care about their local communities, not because they are mandated to.
La Pine ends the column by asking the Florida bankers to work with credit unions on regulatory reform writing that “If (Alex) Sanchez (Florida Bankers Association CEO) really wants to help the 250 members of his organization, regulatory reform is where I suggest he start.”
