ALEXANDRIA, VA (September 23, 2013) -- National Credit Union Administration (NCUA) Board Member, Michael E. Fryzel, was a featured presenter at the grand reopening of Second Federal, a division of Self-Help Federal Credit Union, on Saturday, Sept. 21, in Chicago. During the ceremony, Fryzel praised the efforts of all parties involved in saving the historical institution.
“Second Federal has been a primary source of financial services for the Little Village community that surrounds 26th Street and Pulaski Avenue for more than 130 years. Second Federal will continue to be available to help the community grow and prosper because of the commitment of Self-Help Federal Credit Union,” Fryzel said. “The philosophy of the credit union industry, of people helping people, and the partnership of Self-Help with Second Federal shows the true commitment credit unions have to the individuals and the communities they serve.”
Illinois Governor Pat Quinn and Attorney General Lisa Madigan also took part in the reopening ceremony.
When Second Federal Savings and Loans failed last year, the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation (FDIC) planned to auction the bank’s assets, including $161 million in deposits and 1,100 mortgage notes with a face value of $141 million. The collapse of this institution would have put families and communities at risk for increased foreclosures and crime.
To prevent this, The Resurrection Project (TRP), a Chicago-based community development organization and Self-Help Federal Credit Union forged an alliance with Wintrust Financial Corporation to rescue the failed bank. The partnership first worked with the FDIC to secure the $141 million in mortgage loans before working directly with Wintrust, which had previously acquired Second Federal’s deposits. Wintrust supported the rescue by agreeing to sell the assets back to the TRP and Self-Help partnership.
NCUA worked closely with all the parties involved during Self-Help’s acquisition of Second Federal.
NCUA is the independent federal agency created by the U.S. Congress to regulate, charter and supervise federal credit unions. With the backing of the full faith and credit of the U.S. Government, NCUA operates and manages the National Credit Union Share Insurance Fund, insuring the deposits of more than 95 million account holders in all federal credit unions and the overwhelming majority of state-chartered credit unions.
--NCUA--