High loan delinquency a concern for credit union

THE BET Cooperative Credit Union Limited ended the last financial year with financial investments totaling $16.1 million.
This was one of the highlights told to members at their recently held annual general meeting. The Board of Directors, headed by President Felton Burton, revealed that the financial investments spread across a portfolio of 14 separate investments at six institutions.
“Out of our total investments, $9.9 million is invested in term deposits,” the Board members said. “Our shareholdings are split between Cooperators General Insurance and the Barbados Cooperative and Credit Union League with $1.5 million and $24 000 respectively,” according to the Board. Apart from Burton, other members are Michael Alleyne, Vice President; Clifford Bostic, Secretary; Julian Watson, Treasurer; and Philip King, Assistant Secretary.
The Board reported further that delinquency within the organisation is a big area of concern to all stakeholders.
According to the officials, “The Board and the staff have been trying to work with our members to address our concerns.” It was pointed out that the high delinquency is causing us to make a high provision for bad debt.
Loan delinquency was estimated at about $5 million in the 2021 to 2022 financial year.
They added that the year under review showed a picture of lower operating surplus when compared to the previous year.