While credit unions weathered the recession better than large banks, they are searching for new sources of revenue to counterbalance slow loan business and potential losses on the debit card side resulting from the interchange fee cap. Deepening relationships with their mass affluent members by offering investment and insurance products is one important revenue growth strategy that more and more credit unions are pursuing.

Until recently, only 50% of the top 100 credit unions offered investment solutions to their members. Further, a 2009 Aite Group study of 90 U.S. credit unions of various sizes showed that only a quarter of the sample was offering investment solutions. Those that offer investments are now more focused on growing investment sales than in the past and are working with their broker-dealer partners to attract a larger share of their members' investment assets. According to Kevin Mummau, executive vice president for program development at CUSO Financial Services LP, a broker-dealer that caters exclusively to credit unions, "Credit unions have only scratched the surface of the opportunity. Currently, our advisors are managing an average of 20 cents in investments for every dollar of deposits." Mr. Mummau thinks this number should be at least at 50 cents for every deposit dollar. His best-performing credit union customers have reached $1 in investments for each $1 in deposits.

The credit union industry is in the beginning stages of catering to mass-affluent members' long-term financial goals. Fortunately, credit unions already have several of the capabilities that are important for doing well in this area.