To be a
Desjardins member1 means enjoying many advantages that reflect the financial institution's cooperative model — including dividends. If you're a member, you may have already noticed a deposit in your account from Desjardins.
This amount represents your dividends, which come out of the year-end surplus earnings made by the caisses and Desjardins Group2. These earnings are also used to support local initiatives that improve quality of life for communities.
This is because Desjardins offers personal dividends for members, as well as community dividends, which can (among other things) be applied to the development of innovative projects that support the well-being of youth and the population at large.
It's this kind of genuine commitment that sets Desjardins apart from other financial institutions.
This year, Desjardins will pay back close to $387 million in personal dividends and nearly $53 million in community dividends. This culture of sharing is inspired by their values of equity, democracy and transparency 3.
If you're an eligible Desjardins member, you should receive your personal dividends between May 30 and June 17, 2022.
Dividends are made up of two categories: volume dividends and product dividends. Here's an explainer to help you understand how each one is calculated (and how you can benefit from this super attractive perk).
Product Dividends
You could get up to $50 4 if, during 2021, you had one product from each of Desjardins’ four major product lines5:
- Accounts
- Savings and investments
- Loans, lines of credit and credit cards
- Insurance
Your product dividend is pro-rated according to the number of months during which you held an eligible product from each of these categories.
You don't need to have a fortune to get this dividend either. Desjardins just wants to reward you for your trust and loyalty.
If you're 30 or under6, all you need is one product in three of the four categories listed above to qualify. For example, if you have a savings account, a credit card and car insurance, that product dividend could be yours.
Volume Dividends
This dividend is calculated based on your average balance in each of the four product lines and according to your insurance premiums7. For credit cards8, this amount is based on the net purchases you made with them throughout the year.
During your caisse’s annual general meeting, members are invited to vote on a rate that's then applied per $1,000 for every eligible product in each product line.
The amount you receive is completely personalized because it's calculated depending on which Desjardins products you have and your business volume.
There are so many eligible products within the four product lines that qualify too. That's because Desjardins wants to thank members for choosing them for all their financial needs.
This cooperative institution didn't become a member favourite and community development champion by accident — sharing is in Desjardins' nature.
To learn more about member dividends, check out Desjardins' website or follow them on Facebook or Instagram.
This content is for general informational purposes only and does not constitute financial, investment, legal, tax or accounting advice.
This article was originally published in French on Narcity Quebec.
- You must have been a caisse member during the last fiscal year to be eligible for member dividends.
- For a caisse to pay member dividends, two conditions must be met:
- Desjardins Group must have the financial capacity to pay member dividends.
- Members of the caisse must decide that it will pay member dividends. Members attending the caisse's annual general meeting decide how much of the surplus earnings will be distributed as member dividends or paid into the Community Development Fund, in accordance with all applicable legal requirements.
- The individual and community member dividends come from Desjardins' surplus earnings from the 2021 fiscal year and are determined by vote at each caisse's annual general meeting. For more information, visit desjardins.com/dividend or contact your caisse.
- Maximum of $50 for members that meet the eligibility criteria for 12 months.
- Business members are not eligible for the product dividend.
- Members must be age 30 or under on January 1—the start of the fiscal year—to qualify for youth dividends.
- Business members are eligible for volume dividends on damage insurance products in Quebec only. Clients of The Personal insurance are not eligible for volume dividends.
- Average monthly volume held or due, weighted based on how long you held or used the product and on net purchases, which are the total amount of purchases minus refunds (for example, refunds from a business), made with the credit card over the year.
- Desjardins Group must have the financial capacity to pay member dividends.
- Members of the caisse must decide that it will pay member dividends. Members attending the caisse's annual general meeting decide how much of the surplus earnings will be distributed as member dividends or paid into the Community Development Fund, in accordance with all applicable legal requirements.
