Common narratives from the banking industry about credit unions fall “woefully short of facts,” writes Mike Schenk, CUNA vice president of economics and statistics, in this month’s Credit Union Magazine . In the article , Schenk counters claims that credit unions harm community banks, calling it “plain hogwash.”

“In 1992, the largest 100 banking institutions controlled 41% of financial institution assets and smaller banking institutions controlled 53% of the total. Today, the largest 100 banks control 74% and smaller institutions control 19%,” Schenk wrote. “If small banks are being harmed, the source of that harm clearly is big banks, not credit unions.”

Schenk adds that, as the country’s only member-owned, democratically controlled financial institutions, credit unions are a necessary and “extremely popular” financial alternative.

He points out that credit unions:

• Delivered more than $7 billion in direct financial benefits to consumers in 2014 through lower interest rates, higher yields on savings accounts and fewer and lower fees;

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