Forbes.com: Five Reasons To Switch To A Credit Union Credit Card Posted by AVCU on 5:14 PM

The positive press about credit unions from widely respected financial news outlets just continues to get better. On February 24, referencing the second part of the Credit CARD Act which went into effect earlier in the week, Forbes.com posted an article entitled “Five Reasons to Switch to a Credit Union Credit Card” just after 2:00 p.m. ET. By 4:30 p.m. ET it was the number one top rated article on the Forbes website.

The piece explained that although the CARD Act eliminates so called dirty business practices like switching due dates and retroactively raising interest rates, many large financial institutions have responded by raising interest rates and introducing new fees to make up for the revenue they’ll lose under the consumer friendly legislation. “Citigroup informed some customers that they would owe $90 if they don't charge at least $2,400 a year,” the article states, “while American Express and Bank of America have each introduced annual fees for some cards as high as $100.” It went on to point out that, “Even those with pristine credit are paying at least two percentage points more in interest this year, according to a study by LowCards.com.”

The reasons the article cites as rationale for switching to a credit union credit card are right out of CU Marketing 101:

• Credit union card interest rate cap of 18%
• Overrall lower interest rates credit unions charge versus for-profit institutions
• Lower late payment and over limit fees
• Member-owned means not having to bow to Wall Street pressures to maximize revenue
• Increased service. The article cited the recent Forrester Research survey which found that 70% of credit union members thought that their financial institution put customers' financial interests above of their own