How Shared Branching Works for Credit Union Members
Have you ever worried about accessing your credit union account while traveling or living away from home? If so, shared branching can help take away those worries. Tony Evers, Governor of the State of Wisconsin, proclaimed May 18 – 22, 2026 as Wisconsin Credit Union Shared Branching Week, making now a great time to learn how members can benefit from shared branching.
What Is a Shared Branch Credit Union?
Shared branching is a nationwide network that allows members of participating credit unions to conduct transactions at other participating credit union branches. Instead of being limited to your home branch location, shared branching expands your access to thousands of branches nationwide. It’s a cooperative system designed to make banking more convenient for credit union members wherever they are.
How Does Shared Branching Work?
When you visit a participating shared branch location, you can complete many of the same transactions you would normally handle at your local branch.
Common shared branching services may include:
- Depositing checks or cash
- Withdrawing funds
- Making loan payments
- Transferring money between accounts
- Accessing cashier’s checks or other select services
All you typically need is:
- A valid government-issued photo ID
- Your account number
- The name of your credit union
Some locations may also use identity verification tools to help protect your account from fraud.
Why Shared Branching is Helpful
Shared branching has plenty of benefits. First of all, whenever you’re on vacation or traveling, you won’t need to worry about not being able to access your account. Similarly, if you move away for college, you can find a shared branch near your school and still access everything from your account in another branch. Lastly, if you’re running errands and need to stop by a branch, you can stop by one that is in the area you’re running errands in. You won’t need to drive to your home branch if you’re not near it, saving you time to run those other errands.
How to Find a Shared Branch Location
There are several ways to find a CO-OP shared branch:
- Use the CO-OP locator tool
- Download the CO-OP locator app for iPhone and Android devices
- Call 888-837-6500
- Text your zip code to 91989