NEW YORK — Four community development credit unions have beenchosen by New York City's Office of Financial Empowerment to workwith previously unbanked low-income families and individualsthrough Opportunity NYC, a new incentivized savings accountprogram. The pilot for the project also includes four banks.

The CDCUs that are offering the Opportunity NYC accounts duringthe current pilot phase are all headquartered in the New York Cityarea: Bethex Federal Credit Union, Brooklyn Cooperative FederalCredit Union, Lower East Side Peoples Federal Credit Union andUnion Settlement Federal Credit Union.

The new starter accounts are offered on a “no fee” basis, haveno minimum balance requirement, have no monthly fees, and provideall account holders with ATM cards. As an incentive, new accountholders will receive $50 just for opening the accounts. Qualifiedlow-income residents with existing bank accounts are also eligibleto receive the $50 bonus.

“Community Development Credit Unions are a natural partner inthis type of initiative,” explained Cliff Rosenthal, executivedirector of the National Federation of Community Development CreditUnions. “CDCUs are community-controlled financial cooperatives withstrong ties to the neighborhoods in which they operate. Many CDCUsalready provide financial education, business, and homeownershipcounseling services, and these new accounts should help them reacheven further into the low-income communities they serve.”

Jack Lawson, CEO of Brooklyn Cooperative Federal Credit Union,agreed. “Many people simply don't know about credit unions and theservices we provide,” Lawson said, “but this program brings peoplethrough our front doors so they can see the benefits of opening anew account and taking advantage of our services.” Lawson said thatnew members typically find multiple ways that the credit union canhelp them save money. “Once a new member realizes that they arealso a shareholder in this cooperative,” he said, “they never wantto pay fees to a check-casher or borrow from a payday lenderagain.”