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Iowa credit unions outpace the competition in loan and share growth

DES MOINES, IA (June 18, 2015) — Iowa’s 106 not-for-profit, member-owned credit unions continued to thrive in the first three months of 2015, posting exceptional performance in loan and share growth.

More Iowans are borrowing and saving at their credit union in the first quarter of 2015. Loan growth of 12.6 percent resulted in loan originations of $1.4B, up 38.8 percent from the first quarter of 2014. This reflects a total loan portfolio of $9.3B at Iowa credit unions for first quarter 2015. Share growth of 6.9 percent or $730.3M resulted in $11.3B held in shares at Iowa credit unions for the first three months of 2015. Iowa credit unions’ loan and share growth is faster than the growth rates posted by Iowa commercial banks, national banks and credit unions nationwide for the same period. First mortgage delinquency dropped to .43 percent, 9 basis points lower than the first quarter of 2014 and lower than the national credit union rate of .70 percent.

Iowa credit unions originated $904.2M in consumer loans for the first quarter of 2015, resulting in a remarkable 70.8 percent increase from a year ago. In addition, mortgage originations top $288.8M reflecting a considerable increase of 20.3 percent from the first quarter of 2014. Unsecured personal loans are up 9.7 percent and credit cards increased 8.9 percent. Other real estate originations posted a year over year decline of 1.2 percent.

“Iowa’s consumers are choosing to do business at credit unions more so than ever before,” said Patrick S. Jury, President/CEO of the Iowa Credit Union League. “The increased growth in loans, especially consumer loans, deposits and memberships shows an increased confidence in both the economy and their local, member-owned credit unions.”

Total membership at the state’s credit unions grew by 2.6 percent for the first three months of 2015. Over the past 12 months, Iowa credit unions have added 26,000 members. There are more than one million credit union members in Iowa. The average member relationship at Iowa credit unions is also increasing. The total dollar amount of loan balances and deposits per member rose 6.2 percent to reach $18,663. This tops the national average by more than $2,000 as of March 2015.

Other key Iowa credit union findings from the Callahan and Associates Quarterly Performance Summary Report include:

  • Total loans increased 12.6 percent to $9.3B, compared with a 10.6 percent increase to $730.5B nationwide.
  • Experienced 6.9 percent growth in share and deposits to $11.3B. Nationally, share and deposit accounts at credit unions grew 4.4 percent to $997.2B.
  • Total assets stand at $13.2B. This is an 8.3 percent increase over March 2014. Nationally, federally insured credit unions’ total assets stand at $1.2T. This is a 5.5 percent increase over first quarter 2014.
  • The ROA for first quarter 2015 stands at 1.03 percent. This reflects a 9 basis point increase from the first quarter of 2014.
  • Iowa credit unions have a net charge-off ratio of .37 percent. This rate is well below the national credit union average of .47 percent. Delinquency decreased in all major loan categories, dropping 8 basis points to .65 percent. First mortgage delinquency dropped to .43 percent, 9 basis points lower than the first quarter of 2014 and lower than the national credit union rate of .70 percent.
  • The average net interest margin (the difference between interest earned on loans and investments and interest paid on deposits) decreased 3 basis points to 2.91 percent in the first quarter for Iowa credit unions. This is 9 basis points higher than the national average of 2.82 percent.
  • Membership increased 2.6 percent to 1,047,882, adding more than 26,000 members in the last 12 months. This is nearly 10,000 more members than reported for first quarter 2014. Nationally, membership in federally insured credit unions grew 2.9 percent to more than 101 million. While Iowa’s growth is slower than the national average, one reason is a continued focus on efficiency and the purging of dormant accounts.
  • One Iowa credit union merged in first quarter 2015. Nationally, 68 credit unions have merged and/or dissolved over the same time period. Nationally, there are 6,334 credit unions and of those, 106 are domiciled in Iowa as of March 31, 2015.

About the Iowa Credit Union League 

The Iowa Credit Union League is the trade association that represents the interests of Iowa’s credit unions and their more than one million members. Credit unions are not-for-profit, financial cooperatives owned and operated by their members. Iowans use their credit union membership to receive higher interest rates on savings and lower interest rates on loans. For more information on ICUL and Iowa credit unions, visit www.IowaCreditUnions.com. Follow ICUL on Twitter at www.twitter.com/icul or on Facebook at www.facebook.com/iowacreditunions.To learn more about credit unions, visit www.ASmarterChoice.org.

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