Co-operators Group approves Ontario caisses populaires alliance as new member-owner

An alliance of financial services cooperatives in North Bay, Timmins and other northern Ontario communities will become the 43rd member-owner of The Co-operators Group Ltd. as of Oct. 1, the insurer announced Friday.

Guelph, Ont.-based Co-operators said in a press release that its board of directors approved L’Alliance des caisses populaires de l’Ontario as a new member.

The Co-operators Group is the ultimate parent company of Co-operators General Insurance Company, which provides insurance through a financial advisor network. Its wholly-owned subsidiaries include Sovereign General Insurance Company (which writes commercial, marine and special risk through brokers) and COSECO (which provides home and auto insurance to employer, association and affinity groups).

Not including L’Alliance des caisses populaires de l’Ontario, The Co-operators Group’s member-owners in Ontario are: Co-operative Housing Federation of Canada; Gay Lea foods Co-operative Limited; Growmark Inc.; Ontario Federation of Agriculture; Ontario Natural Food Co-op; Organic Meadow Co-operative Inc.; and United Steelworkers District 6.

Elsewhere in Canada, The Co-operators Group has: six owner members each in British Columbia and Alberta; five each in Manitoba, Saskatchewan and Quebec; and eight in Atlantic Canada.

Nation-wide – not including L’Alliance des caisses populaires de l’Ontario – 15 member-owners are in agriculture, 13 are in the service sector, seven are in financial services, four are in retail/consumer, two are in health and one is a labour union.

CGIC had net earned premiums of $2.19 billion in 2014, of which $1.06 billion was from auto, $577 million was from home, $417 million was from commercial and $107 million was from farm.

L’Alliance des caisses populaires de l’Ontario says it is “a federation of caisses populaires offering administrative services to its member caisses and their employees in the areas of finance, management, training, marketing and central banking system.” Its members include caisses populaires in Alban, Bonfield, Hearst, Kapuskasing, Mattawa, Mattice, Noelville, North Bay, St. Charles, Sturgeon Falls, Timmins and Verner. Each caisse has two represenatives on the board of directors of L’Alliance, which provides “centralized services for its members,” L’Alliance stated.

“Caisses populaires and credit unions have a long history of involvement with The Co-operators, and we’re excited to be building upon that legacy of partnership,” stated Kathy Bardswick, president and chief executive officer of The Co-operators, in a release.

“We believe that by working together we will share responsibilities, resources, competencies and benefits which will be valuable to our members and to our respective organizations,” stated Lucie Moncion, president and CEO of L’Alliance des caisses populaires de l’Ontario, in the Co-operators release.