Founded in 1970, the European Association of Co-operative Banks is one of the main representative bodies in the European Credit Industry. The Association represents, promotes and defends the common interests of its Member Organisations and the co-operative banks represented by those organisations. In this context, EACB is their speaker towards the institutions and organs of the European Union.
To this end, this Association tasks primary involve:
- Informing member organisations of all the initiatives and measures of the European Union relevant to the Banking sector.
- Co-ordinating members’ positions regarding problems of common interest as well as providing a platform for the exchange of their experiences and points of view.
- Lobbying European instances actively.
- Elaborating and presenting position papers regarding problems of common interest.
The EACB shall also be responsible for strenghtening the cooperation between European co-operative banking groups and promoting and developing the co-operative idea in the banking sector and in interaction with other cooperatively constituted organisations more generally.
- The Association comprises full members and associate members defined as follows:
- Full Membership shall be open to national associations and Central credit institutions from Members States of the European Union in which co-operative banks are grouped or which are linked to co-operatives.
- Associate membership shall be open to national association Central credit institutes in which co-operative banks are grouped or which are linked to co-operatives from European States which are not members of the European Union.