Over half of all credit unions saw membership declines

by. Keith Leggett

The available evidence shows that credit union membership growth is concentrated primarily among large credit unions.

CUNA Mutual in it December 2013 Credit Union Trends Report stated:

“Between Q3 2012 and Q3 2013, CUs with assets in excess of $1 billion (210 CUs) accounted for 66% of all membership gains. During the same period, 3,684 CUs (55% of all CUs) reported membership declines. These CUs held 24% of industry assets. Included in this group are 42 CUs with assets above $1 billion.”

CUNA Mutual points out that credit unions added 3 million members over the twelve-month period ending in September 2013. This means that 168 credit unions with $1 billion or more in assets added almost 2 million of these members during the 12-month period ending Septmeber 30, 2013.

In addition, NCUA confirmed this trend noting that only credit unions with more than $500 million in assets on average reported year-over-year membership growth (5.8 percent), as of the end of the third quarter of 2013. Credit unions with less than $500 million in assets generally saw a decline in membership growth and the pace of decline accelerated the smaller the credit union.

Credit unions with less than $10 million in assets saw their membership fall by 10 percent compared to a decline of 5.2 percent for credit unions with between $10 million and $100 million in assets and a decline of 0.1 percent for credit unions with between $100 million and $500 million in assets.

continue reading »