The impact of the cost-of-living crisis on British credit unions and community-lenders

Vik, PM ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0001-9673-8330 and Wallace, AD 2022, 'The impact of the cost-of-living crisis on British credit unions and community-lenders' , Journal of Co-operative Studies, 55 (2) , pp. 29-34. (In Press)

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Abstract

Credit unions are often hypothesised to be less vulnerable to crises than other types of businesses. This paper examines the impact of the cost-of-living crisis on the British credit union and community lender sector drawing on interviews with 25 managers and a focus group with four loan officers. This crisis is affecting businesses and households through high inflation, declining real pay, rising interest rates, and falling economic growth. The findings suggest that credit union and community lender customers are experiencing a deterioration in their finances. They save less, have more unsecured debts, are less likely to qualify for a loan, and are more likely to default on loan payments. Lenders are grappling with a tension between supporting customers affected by the crisis and preserving their own financial position. On the one hand, there is evidence of lenders providing additional support to their members, including emergency loans and hardship payments. On the other, they are mitigating the risks of deteriorating customer finances by tightening lending criteria and reducing lending to higher risk groups. The findings underline the need for future research into the long-term effects on the sector and its ability to provide finance to underserved communities.

Item Type:	Article
Schools:	Schools > Salford Business School
Journal or Publication Title:	Journal of Co-operative Studies
Publisher:	UK Society for Co-operative Studies
ISSN:	0961-5784
Funders:	Fair4All Finance
Depositing User:	PM Vik
Date Deposited:	10 Jan 2023 09:54
Last Modified:	10 Jan 2023 09:54
URI:	https://usir.salford.ac.uk/id/eprint/65368

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