Are credit cards your sweet spot?

by: Henry Meier

For financial industry junkies today is like a total eclipse of the sun. Third quarter earnings reports kickoff for the major banks and J.P. Morgan, Wells Fargo and CitiGroup are all announcing their earnings on the same day. (Incidentally, because of a computer glitch J.P. Morgan’s results slipped out earlier than their 7:00 AM release time and it reported  positive results. What a coincidence.)

One thing for you to keep an eye on is the extent to which credit cards boost the bottom lines of these behemoths. If the conventional wisdom is correct credit cards present both a growth opportunity and a challenge for your credit union. As the WSJ explains in an article yesterday:

“The U.S. credit-card industry has found its sweet spot: a combination of moderate economic growth, low-interest rates and consumers who have struck a balance between spending more and paying their bills on time”

Even for those of us who look at the U.S. economy and see a glass half empty the facts tell you that people are once again taking out the plastic and that there may be some low hanging fruit for credit unions with the right cross-sales pitch.

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