Vancouver, August 28, 2007

Credential hits the road with Gail Vaz-Oxlade, Canada’s Diva of Dollars, to help Canadians build better financial plans

Vancouver, BC – Credential Financial Inc. (Credential) is teaming up with a select group of partner credit unions and Gail Vaz-Oxlade, the host of Gemini award-winning TV show Til Debt Do Us Part, to launch a cross-country seminar series designed to help Canadians improve their financial planning.

Recent research by Ipsos-Reid found that only 25 percent of Canadians have a formal written financial plan (Ipsos-Reid 2006). This is supported by research this summer from J.D. Power and Associates that shows only 30 percent of Canadian investors having a formal written financial plan (see J.D. Power and Associates 2007 Canadian Full Service Investor Satisfaction Study).

“Every Canadian can better achieve their financial goals with a formal plan in place, but it is making that first step that can often seem the most challenging,” said Elaine McHarg, Senior Vice-President, Marketing and Chief Marketing Officer of Credential. “Our goal is to host a series of informative and engaging evenings, with Gail Vaz-Oxlade’s no-nonsense approach and vibrant and irreverent style, to motivate Canadians to start thinking about building a financial plan – and sooner rather than later.”

Credential will kick-off the Master your Finances seminars in Vancouver on September 25th, before stops in Edmonton on October 1st and Ottawa on October 23rd. Three more sessions are scheduled for other cities across Canada in January, 2008.

Master your Finances will give solid financial planning basics, tips on how to get started on a financial plan, and questions you can ask your financial advisor. Each evening will include a pre-session for financial advisors, followed by Gail Vaz-Oxlade’s lively public presentation and a closing reception.

“Every Canadian, whether a student or heading into retirement, should have, and is capable of having, a financial plan,” said Vaz-Oxlade. “This series of evening events will focus on demystifying financial planning – it does not have anything to do with how much money you make, but how you use what you have to make the life you want. You can spend, save and invest, all at the same time.”

Vaz-Oxlade is a dynamic TV host and well-respected financial author, recognized for her unique ability to make even the most complex of financial topics accessible to everyone – even children. On her TV show, Til Debt Do Us Part, Vaz-Oxlade helps debt-burdened couples get to the root of their destructive spending habits.

“We believe that if Canadians are exposed to the virtues of financial planning in a creative and meaningful way, then more will start to create and improve upon their own financial plans,” said McHarg.

About Credential Financial – Credential Financial is the national wealth management company of the Canadian credit union system. Offering a full suite of financial products and services, Credential and its member companies (Credential Asset Management, Credential Securities, Credential Direct, and Credential Insurance Services) provide top quality investment and insurance advice to investors.

For more information contact:
Jane Mitchell, Public Relations
Credential Financial Inc.
Tel: 604.714.3843 Fax: 604.714.3864 
mediarelations@credential.com

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