Being a Desjardins member comes with lots of perks. One of these benefits is that when the financial cooperative makes surpluses at the end of the year, it shares part of them with its members in the form of member dividends.
If you're a member, you might have already noticed that Desjardins has deposited an amount into your accounts. That's your member dividend, and it's your share of the surpluses made by your caisse and Desjardins Group.
But Desjardins doesn't just give money back to its members: it also uses its surplus earnings to fund local projects that enrich the lives of communities.
Through its Community Development Fund, Desjardins supports innovative projects that help improve the well-being of people of all ages. Its caring and involvement are what make this financial institution stand out.
This year, Desjardins will pay out $330 million in member dividends and more than $50 million in community dividends, based on its values of fairness, democracy and transparency. If you're an eligible Desjardins member, you could receive your member dividend between May 31 and June 14.
Member dividends are made up of product dividends and volume dividends. Here's how both parts are calculated and how you can take advantage of this great member perk.
Product dividends
You could get a product dividend of up to $50 if, throughout 2020, you had one product in each of Desjardins' four main product lines:
- Accounts
- Cards, loans and credit
- Savings and investments
- Insurance
Your product dividend also depends on the number of months over which you had an eligible product in each of the four lines. So if you had your products for 6 months of 2020, for example, you'll get half of the dividend. It's that simple.
If you're 30 or younger, you need to have had a product in only three of the four product lines to be eligible. So you could receive a product dividend if you had, say, a savings account, a credit card and car insurance.
And you don't have to be rich to get a product dividend, either: Desjardins just wants to reward you for choosing them and for trusting them with your financial needs.
Volume dividends
Desjardins calculates your volume dividend based on the average balance you had throughout the year in each product line and based on your insurance premiums.
Members of your caisse voted on a rate during your caisse's annual general meeting, and that's the percentage you'll get back. This rate is used to calculate the custom amount you’ll receive, based on your account balances and insurance premiums.
You'll likely find that most of your Desjardins products are eligible. That's because Desjardins Group wants to thank you for choosing them for all of your financial needs.
Sharing comes naturally to Desjardins, so it's no surprise that the cooperative gives back to its members and that it's a leader in socio-economic development in Quebec.
To learn more about member dividends, check out Desjardins' website, or follow them on Facebook or Instagram.
This article was originally published in French on Narcity Québec.
