Two Credit Unions Launch Dividends Season

A credit union in Tennessee and one in Iowa have returned $8.7 million in special dividends to their members, paying more than $26 per member.

Dupaco Community Credit Union in Dubuque, Iowa ($2.9 billion in assets, 153,953 members) paid members $3.7 million Oct. 20 as bonus patronage dividends. The amount represents about $26 per member and 13 bps of its ROA of 0.02% for the 12 months ending Sept. 30.

ORNL Federal Credit Union of Oak Ridge, Tenn. ($3.1 billion in assets, 191,528 members) paid members $5 million Oct. 21 as a special dividend. The amount represented about $27 per member and 16 bps of its ROA of 1.04% for the 12 months ending Sept. 30.

This marked the start of CU Times’ tally of special dividends paid from Oct. 1 typically through Feb. 14. Credit unions interested in sharing their special dividend announcements can email them to JDuPlessis@cutimes.com.

In the 2021-2022 season, CU Times tallied 51 credit unions that announced $300 million in special dividends for their 7.7 million members, or about 6% of members nationwide. The group earned a total of $306.4 million on $131.9 billion in average assets for the 12 months ending Sept. 30. Their special dividends accounted for 23 basis points of that 1.27% ROA.

ORNL’s payout was its fifth year in a row, creating a total of more than $21 million in special dividends since 2018.

This year’s special dividend was worth 9.7 basis points across the combined 12-month average balance of all loans and deposits for each member. Over 124,000 members received a special dividend, with the average payment equaling $39.

Members were paid based on the depth and breadth of their relationships and balances over the last 12 months.

“ORNL Federal Credit Union continued to experience strong results in 2022,” ORNL Chair Randy Gorman said. “We are thankful to our members for trusting us as their financial partner and for continuing to make ORNL FCU a thriving organization.”

Dupaco Community’s special dividend was part of its nine-month program called Thank Use. The timeframe to earn Thank Use was Jan. 1 through Sept. 30.

The average dividend this year was $50. It was the seventh consecutive year a participation dividend has been paid. Since 2016, Dupaco has paid more than $24.4 million in Thank Use.

“Dupaco is more than local,” Dupaco Chief Marketing Officer David Klavitter said. “It’s a financial cooperative, owned by people in our community. The more members use their credit union, the more members, the community and Dupaco benefit.”

The Thank Use campaign rewarded members in relation to each member’s active participation in the credit union. Those recognized services included loans, savings, checking, insurance, investments, debit card, credit card and a financial wellness quiz.