Generations of Trust
1951 2026
On May 12, 1951, ten determined individuals gathered in a borrowed room on West Chicago Avenue with just $359 between them.
75 years later, Selfreliance Federal Credit Union is the largest Ukrainian-American credit union in the United States by membership, serving nearly 50,000 members across 6 states, with $1 billion in assets and $2.5 billion in loans issued over our history.
The $359 is the part people remember. What is harder to explain is how a group of immigrants, who arrived with so little, built something that would endure - and continue to grow - three quarters of a century later. The answer is the same today as it was then: Members helping members. Nothing more complicated than that.
Our Founding
Where Our Story Began
After World War II, Ukrainian immigrants arrived in Chicago in waves. They were engineers, teachers, doctors, farmers, and former soldiers who had fled displaced persons camps in Germany and Austria. Many settled in Ukrainian Village on the Near West Side. Summers were humid and unfamiliar, and as some families later recalled, on hot nights they would take a blanket to Humboldt Park because it was cooler outside than in their apartments.
In 1947, the Selfreliance Association was founded to help these new arrivals find work, housing, and a sense of community. But within a few years, it became clear that humanitarian aid alone was not enough. Families needed a place to save money, a place to borrow it, and a place that would welcome them even if they had no American credit history and spoke limited English.
On May 12, 1951, ten cooperative pioneers signed the Organization Certificate of Selfreliance Federal Credit Union. In those early years, most branches operated on Sunday mornings after church services, when the community naturally gathered. Staff hand-delivered financial reports to the main office each week. Nobody was paid — everything relied on their dedication, commitment, and the shared belief that together, they could build something lasting .
Founded
May 12
1951 · Chicago, Illinois
10 founding members signed the Organization Certificate
$359 in initial capital
48 members attended the first general meeting
Charter No. 7346 issued by the Bureau of Federal Credit Unions
First office rented from the Besida Society , 2408 W. Chicago Ave., Chicago, IL
Staff worked entirely without salary for the first two years
SEVENTY-FIVE YEARS
Moments that defined us
The beginning
Ten pioneers establish Federal Credit Union Charter No. 7346 with $359 and a borrowed room at the Besida Society. In the first two years, the fund issued 11 loans . No one received a salary. Everything ran on trust between members.
Voice of Ukraine
Selfreliance launched a daily Ukrainian-language radio program from its own office, running from January 1957 to January 1959 . It was the first credit union in the region to operate its own daily broadcast, keeping the community informed, connected, and financially educated.
When others turned away
Ukrainian entrepreneurs sought financing to build hotels in Wisconsin Dells . American banks declined to lend to newly arrived immigrants. Selfreliance believed in the projects, offered flexible seasonal repayment terms, and provided the financing. Every project succeeded.
Federal deposit protection
Member savings became federally insured up to $100,000 by the NCUA, placing Selfreliance on equal standing with major U.S. banks. As of 2026, that coverage stands at $250,000 .
A new era of banking
Total assets reached $100 million . The Northwest Branch became the first to implement real-time computerized operations, beginning the transition from paper ledgers to modern financial infrastructure.
Standing by members in hardship
During the financial difficulties of the early 2000s, Selfreliance allocated $200,000 to a community relief fund. More than 200 members who experienced medical emergencies, accidents, or the loss of a loved one received non-repayable grants of $500 to $1,000 .
Selfreliance Foundation established
A dedicated charitable organization was created to support Ukrainian churches, schools, museums, youth organizations, and community institutions. From its founding through 2026, the Foundation has directed more than $10 million to the community.
Standing with Ukraine
Following Russia's full-scale invasion, Selfreliance waived all international wire fees to Ukraine and Poland. More than 20,000 new arrivals under the Uniting for Ukraine program were onboarded, many without prior U.S. credit history. The Selfreliance Foundation raised nearly $900,000 for humanitarian relief.
One billion dollars in assets
A milestone reached by very few community institutions. A merger with New England Selfreliance FCU expanded operations to five states : Illinois, Michigan, New Jersey, Connecticut, and Massachusetts.
From the Archives
Things you may not know about Selfreliance
1952
We had our own radio station
In January 1957, Selfreliance began broadcasting a daily Ukrainian-language radio program from a studio inside its own office on W. Chicago Avenue. The program ran every day for two years, covering financial education, community news, and cooperative life. It was the first credit union in the region to operate its own daily broadcast. Before that, Selfreliance had been advertising on other Ukrainian radio programs since 1952.
1975
We raised $15,000 for the encyclopedia publishing
At our 25th anniversary banquet in 1975, Selfreliance hosted a dinner in honor of Professor Volodymyr Kubiyovych, the editor of the Encyclopedia of Ukrainian Studies, a monumental scholarly project documenting Ukrainian history, culture, and identity. That evening, more than $15,000 was raised for the encyclopedia's publishing fund. Ukraine was still under Soviet occupation. Its independence was sixteen years away. The people in that room were funding the documentation of a nation they believed would one day be free.
1996
Recognized by a U.S. President
In 1996, Selfreliance President and CEO Bohdan Watral received the Herb Wegner Award from the U.S. Credit Union Foundation, the highest honor in the American credit union movement. That same year he received personal recognition from President Bill Clinton. In 1997, President of Ukraine Leonid Kuchma awarded him the Order of Merit, Third Class, for his contributions to the Ukrainian community and financial institutions.
BY THE NUMBERS
The institution your membership built
A MEMBER'S VOICE
“My father came to Chicago in 1958 from a displaced persons camp. He didn't speak English well. He walked into the branch on Chicago Avenue and asked for a loan to buy a used car so he could get to work. They gave it to him. No one had ever given him anything before. I've banked here my whole life. My daughter opened her first account here last year. I don't think my father would believe the size of this place now, but I think he'd recognize it.”
CHICAGO MEMBER · THIRD GENERATION
Stories like this are not unusual at Selfreliance. Families who opened their first accounts in the 1950s and 1960s have children and grandchildren who bank here today. For 75 years, this institution has been present at the moments that matter, the first loan, the first home, the first business. That continuity is not an accident. It is the point.
Member-owned. Federally insured up to $250,000 by the NCUA. Not publicly traded. Every dollar of profit returns to members through better rates, lower fees, and reinvestment in the community. We have no shareholders. We have members.
A LETTER FROM OUR LEADERSHIP
Dear Members, Friends, and Community,
Seventy-five years is a long time in financial services. Most institutions that started in 1951 are gone. They were acquired, merged into something larger, or simply closed. Selfreliance is still here, still independent, still owned by the people it serves. That is not an accident. It is a choice we make every year.
When I joined this credit union in 2003, three weeks after arriving in Chicago from Ternopil, I started as a part-time teller. I did not fully understand then what made this place different from a bank. I do now.
The difference is straightforward. When Selfreliance earns money, it does not go to shareholders. It comes back to members through better rates on loans, higher returns on savings, and reinvestment in the services and branches that serve this community. Every dollar you keep here works harder for you than it would at an institution that owes its profits to outside investors.
We are not the only Ukrainian-American credit union in this country, and we have never tried to be. From Philadelphia to New York to Detroit to California, Ukrainian-American communities have built their own financial institutions on the same cooperative principles. We respect that tradition and the organizations that carry it forward. What we can say about Selfreliance specifically is this: we have grown from one borrowed room in Chicago to 16 branches across six states, and we are still growing.
The next 75 years will bring changes we cannot fully predict. Digital banking will keep evolving. The communities we serve will keep growing. What will not change is the fundamental question I would ask you to consider: where does your money work for you? Compare our rates. Look at our fees. Think about whether your financial institution knows your name, your community, and your history.
We think the answer is clear. But we'd rather show you than tell you.
With gratitude,
Vitaliy Kutnyy
President and CEO
Selfreliance Federal Credit Union
Victor Wojtychiw
Chairman of the Board
Selfreliance Federal Credit Union
OUR STORY, IN FULL
Generations of Trust
Our commemorative booklet. 18 pages, bilingual English and Ukrainian. Browse below or download your copy.
On the occasion of our 75th anniversary.
“The future does not arise by chance. It is shaped by the decisions we make today.”
Vitaliy Kutnyy, President and CEO
Victor Wojtychiw, Chairman of the Board
Become part of the next 75 years.