Saving & Credit Cooperative

 

The thrift and credit cooperative is a type of financial institution whose members are people having the same occupation or living in the same community. Its purpose is to promote savings among members and provide loan funds for productive investment. Cooperative are registered under the Cooperative Act B.E. 2511 (1968).


BACKGROUND
Present-day circumstances are such that people are constantly faced with an increasing cost of living. Low income people especially suffer because they never seem to earn enough to cover their daily needs. They tend to deal with this problem by turning to illegal moneylenders, who charge them very high rates of interest. By so doing their indebtedness is increased even more and the situation becomes more serious for themselves and their families.




These are the people who stand to benefit from joining others, under the principles of self help and mutual help, to deal with these money problems.  The first such cooperative in Thailand was formed among officials of the Cooperative Promotion Department and employees of the Bank for Agriculture and Agricultural Cooperatives (BAAC). It was registered on 28 September 1949 under the name Cooperative Officials' Cooperative Limited. (This is presently known as the Cooperative of Cooperative Officials, Ltd.) The Soon Klang Thewa Credit Union Cooperative was the first community savings cooperative established in the slum area of the Huay Kwang and Din Daeng districts in Bangkok on 17 July 1965. It was not registered at the time. The first credit union to be officially registered was the Maemoon Credit Union, Ltd. in Ubon Ratchathani province on 1 January 1979.


OBJECTIVE
The thrift and credit cooperative is set up to help deal with members' socio-economic problems. It is a type of financial institution promoting savings as well as providing loans, using principles of self help and mutual help. Specifically, this cooperative's objectives are as follows :-

1. To encourage thrift among members. To encourage the habit of savings, the cooperative currently offers two types of savings:-
             Shares. The cooperative sets that members must pay monthly shares at rates set by themselves. These may be deducted directly from monthly salaries. Dividends are paid to members at rates specified according to cooperative law, without tax deductions. When resigning from a cooperative, the member can withdraw his/her shares.
             Deposits. Both savings and fixed deposits are offered to cooperative members. Interest on these deposits may be equal to or higher than commercial bank rates depending on the financial status of each cooperative.

2. To provide loan services to members. Members' shares and deposits comprise the loan funds made available to members in need. Interest on these loans are usually at rates lower than that of the prevailing market. There are currently three types of loans available:-
             Emergency loans. In crisis or emergency situations, a member may borrow up to one half of his/her monthly income, depending on the financial status of the cooperative. Repayment is normally made in two installments, without collateral.
             Ordinary loans. The cooperative can provide an ordinary loan up to a maximum of one-half of a member's monthly income, again depending on the financial status of the cooperative. These can be between 4 to 15 times, or within the range of Baht 40,000 to 300,000. Normal repayment is from 24 to 72 installments, with one other member acting as guarantor. The maximum amounts allowed for emergency and ordinary loans are based on the average amount of members' incomes.
             Special loans. When the cooperative services can be made available to members for housing and investment purposes. A member may borrow the actual amount required for investment or to purchase house and/or land, not exceeding the ceiling amount of between Baht 400,000 to 1,000,000. Repayment period is between 10 to 15 years, using real property as collateral.


OPERATIONS
After a Thrift and Credit cooperative is formed, members' representatives are elected to form Board of Directors to administer cooperative operations. Elections are held at annual general meetings.
 

The Board meets at least once a month to determine operational policies to be implemented by operations personnel. Personnel normally include a manager, an assistant manager, accountants, bookkeepers, etc., depending on the size and financial situation of the cooperative.

Thrift and credit cooperative raise capital funds through shares, deposits, reserve funds, loan funds, and fund support or donations.


RIGHT AND RESPONSIBILITIES
The cooperative is owned by its members. Effective and efficient management of the cooperative is ensured when members exercise their rights as well as responsibilities properly.

The highest responsibility of the individual member is attendance at the annual general meeting. The AGM gives him/her the opportunity to protect membership rights as well as the means to monitor cooperative operations and a fair sharing of benefits. It is also a forum to determine general policies, elect Committee members, and assign tasks to further benefit all the members. Within the framework of cooperative principles, laws and regulations and procedures, members must discuss problems together, share ideas, and exercise the right to vote on Committees and meeting resolutions.

 
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The Federation of Savings and Credit Cooperatives of Thailand Limited (FSCT)
199 Moo 2, Nakhon in Road, Bang Si Thong Subdistrict, Bang Kruai District, Nonthaburi Province, 11130
Tel: (+66) 2496 1199 Fax: (+66) 2496 1177 , (+66) 2496 1188  E-mail:
contact@fsct.com