Gulf & Fraser

What Gulf & Fraser does

Gulf & Fraser, now operating as Beem Credit Union, is a member-owned cooperative financial institution headquartered in Burnaby, British Columbia, and founded in 1940. It serves approximately 200,000 members across BC, providing a full-service retail and small-business banking platform through a combination of physical branch locations, a mobile banking app on iOS and Android, and a web-based online banking portal. Core product lines include everyday banking (the no-monthly-fee Essentials spending account, plus savings, credit cards, and personal loans), mortgage and auto lending, business banking and commercial loans, wealth management and retirement planning through the Beem Wealth & Planning division, and personal insurance products through the Insure segment.

Revenue is generated principally from net interest income on the spread between loans (auto, home, and personal) and deposits, supplemented by transaction fees, account charges, recurring wealth management fees, and insurance product income. GTM is multi-channel: top-of-funnel awareness via social media (Facebook, Instagram, LinkedIn, YouTube), website content and blog, and community programs such as the Purple Cap Awards ($1M in annual BC student bursaries), combined with bottom-of-funnel conversion through an online welcome bonus ($400 for new spending account members) and direct, fully digital membership onboarding reachable in minutes via phone, laptop, or tablet. Operationally the credit union is differentiated by local decision-making, longer-tenured staff relationships, and community reinvestment messaging positioned against the "Big Bank" alternative, with regulatory membership in CUDIC for deposit insurance.

A strategic inflection occurred in 2024 with the rebrand from Gulf & Fraser to Beem Credit Union, signaling a refresh of brand and digital experience while preserving the cooperative ownership model. The technology footprint is largely a standard digital banking stack: mobile and online channels, online account opening, and member self-service tools, with an explicit technology vendor footprint (e.g., Arcstar) supporting the platform. Owned by members rather than shareholders, the institution does not have disclosed external funding, parent-company ownership, or venture/PE investment, and its growth is constrained geographically to British Columbia.

Name

Gulf & Fraser

Legal name

Beem Credit Union

Website

https://gulfandfraser.com

Company type

Private

Founded year

1940

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

251–500 employees

Short description

Gulf & Fraser (operating as Beem Credit Union) is a member-owned cooperative credit union in Burnaby, British Columbia serving nearly 200,000 members with personal and business banking, wealth management, insurance, and digital self-service via mobile and online channels.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Credit Union Banking

NAICS

Credit Unions (52213)

SIC

State Commercial Banks (6022)

akta.pro primary industry

Community Credit Unions (Retail/Consumer Focus) (FSABAEAA)

Keywords

• Retail banking services
• Credit union services
• Wealth management
• Personal loans
• Business banking

Headquarters

HQ city

Burnaby

HQ country

Canada

HQ region

North America

Markets served

GTM type

B2C

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Technology or R&D, Infrastructure, Marketing or Sales

Revenue model

1. Interest Income: Spread between interest earned on loans (auto, home, personal) and interest paid on deposits
2. Account Fees and Charges: Monthly fees, transaction charges and penalties on banking services
3. Wealth Management Services: Investment and wealth planning services through Beem Wealth & Planning division
4. Insurance Services: Insurance products offered through the Insure segment

Pricing tiers

Distribution channels5 records

Marketing channels4 records

Core offering

Gulf & Fraser, operating as Beem Credit Union, is a member-owned community credit union providing personal banking (chequing, savings, mortgages, auto and personal loans, credit cards), business banking, wealth management and financial planning, and insurance products to approximately 200,000 members across British Columbia. Services are delivered through physical branches, an online banking platform, and a mobile banking app supported by financial wellness tools.

Product overview

Beem Credit Union (formerly Gulf & Fraser) operates as a credit union offering a unified financial services platform with multiple product lines. The core offerings include Personal Banking (checking, savings, loans, mortgages), Business Banking, Wealth Management, and Insurance products. The Essentials Spending Account serves as the primary no-fee checking product. Digital access is provided through the Beem Mobile Banking App for iOS and Android, while Financial Calculators support member planning activities. All products are delivered through a combination of digital channels (mobile app, online banking) and physical branch locations across British Columbia.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Segments4 records

Ideal customer profiles4 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Feature3 records

Partnerships

One partnership is on record.

• CUDICminorOthersCUDIC (Credit Union Deposit Insurance Corporation) provides deposit protection insurance for Beem Credit Union members. This is a regulatory/mandatory partnership required for credit union operations in BC.

Scale indicators4 records

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights5 records

Direct peers

• Vancity: Largest community credit union in British Columbia, offering personal/business banking, wealth, and insurance to members across BC. Directly comparable to Gulf & Fraser / Beem by geography, product set, and cooperative member-owned model.
• First West Credit Union: BC-based credit union formed through consolidation of multiple regional credit unions, serving members with personal, business, and wealth services. Comparable to Gulf & Fraser in BC focus and full-service cooperative model.
• Coast Capital Savings: Major BC credit union serving members with personal banking, mortgages, and wealth services. Overlaps directly with Gulf & Fraser in BC retail and business banking segments.
• BlueShore Financial: BC-based credit union focused on wealth and personal banking for clients in the North Shore and Greater Vancouver area. Comparable cooperative model and full-service offering to Gulf & Fraser.

Broad incumbents

• Desjardins Group: Largest cooperative financial institution in Canada, operating a federated network of credit unions across Quebec and Ontario. Comparable cooperative model and full-service offering, though at significantly larger scale and different geography.
• Tangerine (Scotiabank): Canadian direct bank owned by Scotiabank, offering no-fee digital banking. Competes with Gulf & Fraser for digitally-engaged Canadian retail banking customers seeking lower-fee alternatives to big banks.
• Royal Bank of Canada (RBC): Largest Canadian bank with full personal, business, wealth, and insurance offerings, including in BC. Gulf & Fraser explicitly positions against the big-bank model, making RBC a primary indirect competitor for member acquisition.
• Toronto-Dominion Bank (TD): One of Canada's Big Five retail banks with extensive BC presence. Competes with Gulf & Fraser for retail deposits, mortgages, and business banking across BC.

Emerging players

• Wealthsimple: Canadian digital wealth management platform that has expanded into chequing and savings accounts. Adjacent competitor for the wealth and everyday banking segments where Gulf & Fraser's Beem Wealth division operates.

Regional players

• Alterna Savings (now Haventree Bank): Ontario- and federally-operating Canadian credit union offering full personal, business, and wealth services. Comparable member-owned cooperative model to Gulf & Fraser though operating in a different primary geography.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat5 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• YouTubeyoutube.com/@BeemCreditUnion
• Facebookfacebook.com/GulfandFraser
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/gulf-and-fraser
• Instagraminstagram.com/beemcreditunion/?hl=en
• Xx.com/GulfandFraser

Compliance1 record

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about Gulf & Fraser