Milestones in Cooperative Banking
-1974 • The first cooperative bank, the Cooperative Rural Bank of Nueva Ecija, Inc., was organized and registered. This spearheaded the organization of many other CRBs throughout the country.
-1979, December 14 • In response to the common need of cooperative banks for a unified articulation of their interest and welfare, the Cooperative Rural Bankers Association
of the Philippines, Inc., also known as BANGKOOP, was organized and registered with the BCOD as a non-stock association.
-1985, March 25 • Bangkoop amended its charter to become a stock cooperative federation named Cooperative Rural Banks Federation of the Philippines, to enable it to cope with the rapidly diversifying needs of its members.
-1985, August 10 • Together with the CUP, Bangkoop organized the Joint Commission on Cooperative Legislation, tasked with securing tax exemption and other privileges for cooperatives that eventually facilitated the signing of PD 2008.
-1987 • Enshrinement of cooperative development in the Constitution of the Philippines.
-1990, March 10 • A new Cooperative Law (RA 6938) was enacted with special provisions on cooperative banks.
-1991, September 19 • President Corazon C. Aquino created the Cooperative Banking Committee (Memo Order No. 396) to assist in the organization of new cooperative banks and in the strengthening of the existing ones "...through capital adequacy, liquidity assistance and capability building" (Sec. 2), among others.
-1993, February 27 • President Fidel V. Ramos re-organized the Cooperative Banking Committee (Memo Order No. 396) under the Office of the President to be composed of: the Secretaries of Socio-Economic Planning, Department of Agrarian Reform, Department of Agriculture, Department of Environment and Natural Resources, and Department of Trade and Industry; Governor of Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas; President of Land Bank of the Philippines; Chairman of the Cooperative Development Authority; and Chairman of Cooperative Banks Federation of the Philippines (BANGKOOP).
1999, July 10 • Cooperative Bank of Bukidnon and Cooperative Bank of Misamis Oriental became the first cooperative banks to engage in Micro-finance (through Micro Access to Bank Services-Mindanao [MABS-M], a USAID program). Since then, a growing number of cooperative banks has been extending micro-finance services to their clients as conduits of People's Credit and Financing Corporation.
-2000, September 26 • Cooperative Bank of Aurora Province, the 53rd bank in the cooperative banking movement, was given the license to operate through the initiative of BANGKOOP.
