Welcome from the CEO

Dear Member,

2022 was a year to remember for our members, community, and team. We started the year with the launch of The 4Front Foundation, reached $1 billion in assets, and expanded into west Michigan. Even with all these accomplishments, 4Front remained dedicated to our communities. Our team continued their commitment to volunteering their time to make our community a better place. We donated $125,652 to 93 community organizations, while our team contributed their valuable time and volunteered 1,669 hours.

Through the hard work, ingenuity, and tenacity of our collective 4Front team, we’ve achieved an important milestone in the financial institution world; $1 billion in assets. Shout out to our team, which positioned us to offer state-of-the-art mobile banking, with chat and text, as well as extended VideoTeller hour service. Our team is truly living the credit union mission by being their best, day in and day out. People helping people lives in our veins.

Our incredible members, nearly 100,000 strong and over 6,000 business members, deserve a heartfelt thank you for their loyalty and essential role in helping us reach this incredible moment. It’s what happens when, for almost 70 years, we’ve made an unwavering commitment to making banking smart and simple.

Reaching this milestone puts us in an even better position to serve our communities through volunteerism and direct financial support. In good times and bad, we’re here for the long haul, in lockstep with our member’s financial journey.

2022 was a year of financial extremes. The year started with the Fed interest rates near 0%, and consumer savings accounts fairly flush. However, inflation started becoming a major issue, and consequently, the Fed raised interest rates seven times, leading to the most significant nine-month rate increase in 40+ years. 4Front moved swiftly to issue desirable CD rates while also increasing many of our savings account rates. We also maintained our 4% checking product. As interest rates rose to 15-year highs, we witnessed more of our members struggling to finance more expensive homes and autos. However, 4Front continued working with our members and communities to find creative solutions to get people into their dream car and home. In fact, we funded more loans and lent more money to more people in 2022 than any other year in our history.

Now to the future. While we have many initiatives planned for 2023, this year will focus on geographic expansion and taking our award-winning products and services to new communities. In late January, we opened branches in Muskegon, Holland, and Zeeland. In late 2023, we will be expanding into the Upper Peninsula with the purchase of Old Mission Bank. Upon completion of the transaction, the Sault Ste. Marie and Pickford locations will temporarily operate as “Old Mission, a Division of 4Front Credit Union” until we can complete a system conversion in late 2023. At that point, the branches will be rebranded as 4Front, and we will be able to offer the same excellent services our current members have come to expect to the great people in the eastern UP. While we have the technology to service anyone remotely, by the end of 2023, we will be able to see your smiling faces in communities from Sault Ste. Marie to Holland.

Please know that as we grow, we will remember where we came from and those who have contributed to our success. We will continue to offer best-in-class service, whether you wish to manage your money at a traditional branch or through our increasingly easy-to-use technology. At 4Front, wherever you are on your financial journey, we’re here to make banking smart and simple.

We want to thank our members for trusting us with their financial needs, and we look forward to partnering in 2023 and beyond.

Wishing you all the best in 2023,

Andrew Kempf, Chief Executive Officer