July 2024: A letter from the President

Dear Members,

As you may know, building an emergency savings is an important financial milestone, but for many, it can feel unattainable. According to Bankrate’s 2024 Annual Emergency Savings Report, 27% of US adults have no emergency savings, but the survey also found that Americans want to have more money in their savings accounts. In times of economic challenges, finding a way to save without significantly reducing your budget is essential.

Empowering our Members to build an emergency savings is one of the many reasons behind Centra’s Member Loyalty Rewards. With this program, Members can earn (and save) cash based on how they use their accounts. All Members with a qualifying consumer checking account are automatically eligible to earn rewards. There are multiple ways to grow your Member Loyalty Rewards:

• Cashback Checking. With Centra’s Cashback Checking, you can earn cash each time you use your debit card. Once you’ve set up direct deposit and signed up for eStatements, you’ll get cash back if you use your debit card at least 15 times per month. With this account, you can also earn a limited amount of foreign ATM fee refunds, depending on how you use your account.
• Debit Card Round Up. Using Round Up helps you grow your savings a little bit at a time by “rounding up” the change on each debit card purchase. For example, if you purchase a tank of gas for $42.50, then $0.50 will be automatically transferred from your checking account to your Member Loyalty Account.
• Certificate interest. To boost your long-term savings, you can choose to have the interest you earn on certificates with Centra deposited into your Member Loyalty Account.
• A great annual percentage yield. All your Member Loyalty Rewards are deposited into a Member Loyalty Account (MLA), where it will earn a higher interest rate than most other savings accounts at Centra. This means the longer you leave your rewards in your MLA, the more your money will grow.
• Specials and promotions. Centra periodically gives back to Members with specials and promotions. For example, if you haven’t opened a checking account with Centra yet, you could earn up to $150 when you do.

Each of these opportunities can help you build your savings without even trying. In fact, Centra Members earned a total of $3.5 million in 2023 with Member Loyalty Rewards! Think of your Member Loyalty Account as the savings account you don’t touch until there’s an emergency. If you need help leaving the money in there, consider renaming or hiding the account in digital banking. Under ‘Settings,’ choose ‘Hide & Manage Accounts’ and customize how you see your MLA. You can also set a savings goal for your MLA under the ‘Financial Wellness’ menu.

Our Team Members are always here to help. If you want to learn more about making the most of Member Loyalty Rewards or ways you can save money, make an appointment to visit your nearest Centra location. We recently opened a location in Lebanon, Indiana, and our Zionsville service center will open at the end of July, expanding our reach to our Members.

Finally, I’d like to thank our Members for sharing their thoughts through the voting process for the proposed merger partnership with Hoosier Hills Credit Union. On Monday, June 3, Centra Members did vote in favor of the proposed merger partnership, with 96% of voting Members casting a positive vote. While the Hoosier Hills Board of Directors has decided not to pursue a second vote with their Membership, I appreciate our Members taking the opportunity to have their voices heard through this democratic process.

Sincerely,
Rick A. Silvers
President and CEO