The following post is provided by World Council's Credit for Agriculture for Producers (CAP) Project, a USAID-funded activity aimed at strengthening the Ukrainian credit union market and expanding access to agricultural credit.

Digitalization is undoubtedly one of the main priorities credit unions need to embrace in order to satisfy member needs. With demand for online and mobile financial services only exacerbated by the COVID-19 pandemic, the transition to e-banking systems has become a paramount issue for credit unions in Ukraine.

As they turn to embrace digitalization and adapt to the increasing demand for these services, it is fundamentally important to share best practices and leverage the potential of cooperation between credit unions.

With that in mind, the CAP Project hosted a recent webinar for Ukrainian credit unions that featured presentations from Lithuanian Central Credit Union (LCCU) representatives on their development of the I-Kubas IT-system and I-Unija e-banking system. LCCU representatives also explained how Lithuanian credit unions who have adopted those systems have seen benefits for themselves and their members.

Aiming at consolidating the credit union market in Lithuania and helping to generate income for credit unions, LCCU has invested in digital products and software solutions, and adapted to ever-changing market demands. As of today, 45 credit unions and more than 400 employees in Lithuania use the I-Kubas system.

The webinar covered:

• the benefits of a centralized credit union system.
• the main products supported by I-Kubas system.
• The step-by-step process of credit issuance via the I-Kubas system.
• An evaluation of risks and reporting.

According to Jovita Platenkoviene, LCCU’s Head of Business and IT Development, a centralized IT system for credit unions has numerous advantages, such as costs savings, a more efficient support system and the ability to continuously monitor compliance to legal and business requirements. Furthermore, a centralized IT system facilitates control over security aspects and required updates.

As illustrated by the case of the I-Kubas system, a centralized IT system for credit unions enables the automation of multiple functions. Ingrida Kedyte, LCCU’s Head of Risk Evaluation, Monitoring and Loss Events, showed how the I-Kubas system has simplified report generation, member evaluation and the monitoring of potential losses. Additionally, it has allowed credit unions to identify members connected by certain similarities, such as their economic dependency, and construct scoring systems based on risk groups.

Given that consumer demand fueled by the pandemic has made digitalization even more crucial for Ukrainian credit unions, the presentation on the I-Unija e-banking system was also of great importance. LCCU representatives shared how they implemented member identification, supported e-services and also elaborated on future projects that are being developed to address member needs.

The webinar also gave Ukrainian credit union professionals the chance to inquire about the possibilities and benefits of the I-Kubas IT system and I-Unija e-banking system adopted by LCCU, which might help them to leverage the opportunities of digitalization in the future.