An economic report by CUNA Mutual Group revealed that despite fewer credit unions in 2015, credit union memberships grew by 248,000.
The February Credit Union Trends Report released Feb. 26 said there were 39 fewer credit unions in December, compared to a month earlier, and that the number of credit unions for the year declined by 288, compared with a loss of 282 in 2014.
With a robust demand for credit, solid job growth and comparatively lower fees and loan interest rates, memberships improved 3.8% for the year. Membership rose 0.25% in December, slightly lower than the December 2014 gain of 0.32%.
Total credit union assets rose 0.9% in December compared to a decline of -0.2% for December 2014. Assets overall rose 7.1% during the year, resulting from an increase in deposits of 6.8%, as well as an 11.6% increase in borrowings. Capital increased by 6.5%.
Loan delinquency rates fell in December to 0.80%, slightly down from 0.85% one year earlier. The report attributed the lower delinquency rates to fast loan growth, a robust labor market and lower gas prices. The credit union net worth ratio fell to 10.7% in December, down from 10.8% in December 2014 and equal to community banks' core capital ratio.
Loan portfolios grew by 0.9% in December, up from 0.8% in the year prior. Loan balances grew 10.2% during the last 12 months. With loan balances growing faster than assets during the last year, the credit union average loan-to-asset ratio reached 65.5%, up from 63.7% in December 2014.
New auto loan balances rose 1.7% in December and 16.5% for the full year. Strong consumer fundamentals drove auto loan growth, including an improving labor market, falling oil prices, faster wage growth, lower interest rates, an expanding driving-age population, improving construction activity and better household balance sheets.
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