St. Martin of Tours celebrates 50 years
BOCAUE, BULACAN — From the very beginning in 1969, self-help was considered the key to attaining the objective of creation of wealth. The St. Martin of Tours Credit & Development Cooperative (SMTCDC) was organized in November 1969 as a Church-based Credit Union Cooperative named after the Patron Saint of the town.
Named after the town’s patron saint, this credit union persevered, slowly took root, flourished and sometimes floundered under the able leadership of Dr. Antonio B. Fortuna
On January 27, 1970, St. Martin of Tours Credit Union was formally registered with the Department of Agriculture’s Bureau of Cooperative Development.
In the early years during the 70s, the Credit Union Cooperative idea was more of a theory rather than a “practice”. Fifteen visionary Cursillistas from St. Martin of Tours Parish, without any knowledge on Credit Cooperatives, contributed the amount of two-hundred fifty pesos (Php 250) as initial capitalization. Millionaire Cooperatives were unheard of during those days. There were good Seminar speakers then but were more of theoreticians rather than one whom the cooperators could emulate or relate to in a practical way.
The growth and development of SMTCDC can be likened to that of a toddler who learns to walk unaided and develops bumps and bruises in the process. It was on its own – no government aid nor did it seek assistance from any institution. Its first ten years was a “learning curve”. Its style of governance of TRANSPARENCY AND ACCOUNTABILITY evolved slowly during these years.
On the 10th year, from a one-room dark and dreary office, a modest two-storey office was built on a rented lot owned by the Parish. This office building was constructed from its own savings. Its credibility is now fully recognized and ascertained. Thereafter, SMTCDC was propelled to new heights of achievements. Membership grew by leaps and bounds. Assets remarkably improved to the satisfaction of members who benefited from the availability of funds for their Productive and Providential Loans.
The St. Martin staff, then made up of eight (8) employees, settled in their new home and went about the business of taking care of 1,700 members whose Deposits totaled P2.8 Million, with Share Capital of P1.3 Million.
In 1984, fifteen (15) years since its inception, membership was at 3,000. It was also during this time the Cooperative developed the St. Martin Village, a housing project located in Barangay Bambang under its Land for the Landless Members Project.
In 1988, a satellite office was put up along Mc Arthur Highway in Bunlo, Bocaue, Bulacan to respond to the needs of 4,487 members. The dramatic increase in membership base brought Total Deposits to P51 Million, while Share Capital rose to P17 Million, with Total Assets growing to P74 Million.
It was in the same year when St. Martin started automating its operations using COBOL to support its fast-expanding program.
The Sincerity, Dedication, Passionate love for the cooperative movement by well-chosen Board members and educated employees played a crucial role in the growth and success of this self-sustaining and self-reliant cooperative.
The 80’s saw St. Martin spreading its wings. At this point, St. Martin was poised to conquer a bigger world.
The 90’s proved to be a turning point for St. Martin. This is the decade that witnessed St. Martin’s spurt of growth in terms of physical expansion and member base. It was also during this time when the Coop aggressively pursued the development of ground-breaking products and services.
The 90’s was the decade when more satellite offices were opened and more buildings were constructed. It was also during these years when St. Martin made modern technology a primary tool to advance its products and services.
In 1991, a second branch was set up in Barangay Taal, Bocaue to bring the services of St. Martin closer to the people and to encourage more membership.
Nineteen ninety-three (1993) was a busy year. A second building was erected—a three-storey edifice to house St. Martin’s Bunlo Branch. By this time, total membership was at 8,137. Total Deposits grew three-fold, totalling P190 million. Total Share Capital jumped to P69 Million, while total assets climbed up to P289 million. St. Martin’s loans portfolio was recorded at P234 million. Its staff grew to 109 employees.
St. Martin undertook the conversion of its database—from COBOL to FOXPRO—to allow the local interconnection of the coop’s operations.
A couple of years later, in 1995, the construction of the Taal Branch Building began.
Plans to expand outside the town of Bocaue were also afoot. However, St. Martin was beginning to feel some resistance from other smaller cooperatives in Bulacan, somewhat affecting its expansion plans.
What is now known as St. Martin of Tours Credit and Development Cooperative (SMTCDC), changed its name twice, adapting to changes through the years, while continuously growing and expanding its reach, bringing its products and services outside Bulacan. Its branches serve members in Central Luzon. SMTCDC’s AGAPAY microfinance branches serve clients in Bocaue and Sta. Maria in Bulacan; and Cabanatuan and Talavera in Nueva Ecija. It offers financial services such as AGAPAY Regular Loan, Pamilihan Loan, AGAPAY Regular Savings and Gabay sa Pag-unlad Savings; and social services like business and skills training, St. Martin Life Plan (SMTLP), medical and dental services, and awareness programs (e.g., dengue awareness, disaster and risk management).
In 1997, Asia was hit by a severe financial crisis. St. Martin had to adopt stringent loan processing standards, including the careful screening of loan applications.
Despite the crisis, St. Martin closed the year on a positive note, largely due to prudent management decisions. For 1997, the Coop accrued P514 Million in total assets.
With almost 9,000 members enjoying the benefits of a well-established cooperative, St. Martin bravely faced an Asian financial crisis. Because of prudent management, it closed the ‘90s on a stable note. Clearly, St. Martin is ready for bigger challenges.
The new millennium saw St. Martin breaking new grounds, and conquering more frontiers.
Still reeling from the effects of an extended Asian crisis, all five rural banks in Bocaue found their operations in dire straits, and were forced to close. St. Martin was not spared; Assets fell to P383 million due to the substantial withdrawals of some coop members.
Coming out strong despite the challenges of the Asian crisis, the Board did not hesitate to bring St. Martin to more places.
In 2002, the Cooperative Development Authority (CDA) approved the amendment to St. Martin’s by-laws, allowing the Cooperative to extend its area of operations encompassing all the provinces, towns, and other cities in the Philippines.
In the same year, St. Martin was renamed to reflect its role as an effective channel for socio-economic growth in the communities it serves. From hereon, the cooperative came to be known as ST. MARTIN OF TOURS CREDIT AND DEVELOPMENT COOPERATIVE (SMTCDC), a fitting name for an institution that renders multi-faceted financial products and social services.
No less than the Cooperative Development Authority cited St. Martin of Tours Credit and Development Cooperative as one of the country’s globally competitive cooperatives.
Seeing the need to further extend its services, SMTCDC opened its membership to the communities of Balagtas, Pandi, Sta. Maria, and Marilao. Sound management and the cooperation of its members and borrowers proved to be key factors to SMTCDC’s success.
After a while, branches in Sta. Maria, Guiguinto, San Miguel, Baliuag and Meycauayan were opened to bring SMTCDC’s products and services closer to more people. It also branched outside of Bulacan to serve the community of Cabanatuan City and Talavera in Nueva Ecija and Orani in Bataan.
In 2007, SMTCDC launched its automated tellering system in partnership with Chinatrust, giving full service access to its members 24 hours a day, seven days a week, and from anywhere in the world. The launching of the SMTCDC ATM and debit card marks another first in the history of Philippine cooperatives
During the same year, SMTCDC partnered with NATCCO Network for a joint undertaking on microfinance program where the revolving capital was funded jointly by NATCCO and SMTCDC on a 50-50 basis. After a year, SMTCDC acquired the 100% operating capital in both branch and microfinance operations.
SMTCDC adopted more technological innovations to further improve transparency of operation and
predictability of service delivery. Two thousand and eight (2008) saw SMTCDC strengthening its ICT
systems starting with migrating from a DOS-based to a Windows-based operating system.
Complementing this, SMTCDC’s branches were connected through a Wide Area Networking (WAN). WAN project successfully connected 10 branches, automatically linking all branch transactions like membership, loan applications, deposits and withdrawals, collections, accounting, and social
services to the Central Office, translating to faster processing and approvals.
The Wide Area Networking (WAN) project was a landmark program of SMTCDC, and the first and only one of its kind among cooperatives in the country.
In 2010, a centralized fund management system was developed to ensure better control of cash and efficient use of liquid funds. The Head Office through its Central Fund carefully evaluates and screens all investments and makes certain that SMTCDC earns better returns from its liquid funds.
An integrated Communication Center was established in the same year to facilitate the flow of communication, boost collection efficiency, and improve members’ access to information on cooperative affairs. SMTCDC believed that an informed membership results to an increased number of members and stronger patronage.
The officers of SMTCDC strived to build a strong foundation for successor leadership through an efficient, inclusive election process that would ensure that all members are able to freely select their leaders. In an unprecedented move, SMTCDC made another pioneering milestone when it conducted the first ever simultaneous electronic election in March 2010
Through the years, SMTCDC has evolved into a full service credit and cooperative institution offering loan products for business and personal needs; consumer deposit products offering banking services such as savings and time deposits.
SMTCDC finds every opportunity to exercise its commitment to social corporate responsibility. As Management sought to keep the balance in every aspect of business operations, SMTCDC always puts to fore the needs of the community that it serves.
After nearly five decades, SMTCDC has reached a large membership base with of 61,600 members served by twelve (12) full-service branches.
From the initial capital of P250.00, SMTCDC currently boasts an asset base of P2.2 Billion, Total Capital of P530 Million, and Deposits posted at P1.4 Billion. SMTCDC today stands as the biggest, the strongest community credit cooperative in Central Luzon.
St. Martin of Tours, the saint, has always been associated with sharing—his cloak a symbol of heroic charity. With the continued support and patronage of its members, SMTCDC is committed to continue spreading its cloak of assurance in the common pursuit of improving the lives of more people and ensuring the sustainable growth of the Cooperative which in turn shall safeguard the future of its membership and the communities in the years to come.
The Sincerity, Dedication, Passionate love for the Cooperative movement by well-chosen Board members and highly-qualified employees played a crucial role in the growth and success of this self-sustaining and self-reliant co-operative.