Four Credit Unions Award $18 Million in Special Dividends

Four credit unions have distributed $18.4 million in special dividends since late November to members from Utah to South Carolina.

The largest was from Founders Federal Credit Union of Lancaster, S.C. ($4.3 billion, 260,119 members), which paid members $10 million Tuesday, Dec. 12 as a Loyalty Bonus Dividend. The amount represents about $38 per member and 24 basis points of its return on average assets of 1.20% for the 12 months ending Sept. 30.

The credit union’s last Annual Bonus Dividend was $5 million paid out in 2019, but it distributed a $20 million Super Loyalty Bonus Dividend in February. Since 1992, Founders has given back more than $101 million in special dividends.

This year’s award from Founders ranged from $15 to $10,000 to qualified members.

The other three special dividend payouts were from:

• Educators Credit Union of Racine, Wis. ($3.2 billion, 229,413 members), which paid members $5.1 million Dec. 1 as a Member Loyalty reward. The amount represents about $22 per member and 16 bps of its ROA of 1.42% for the 12 months ending Sept. 30.
• Energy Plus Credit Union of Indianapolis, Ind. ($40.8 million in assets, 4,039 members) paid members $34,000 Nov. 30 as a special Bonus Dividend and Loan Interest Rebate. The amount represents about $8 per member and 8 bps of its ROA of 0.72% for the 12 months ending Sept. 30. “Our board elects to do that so our members have that money for a little extra spending before the holidays,” President/CEO Cari Palmer said.
• Goldenwest Federal Credit Union of Ogden, Utah ($3.1 billion in assets, 183,278 members), which is paying members $3.3 million as a bonus dividend Jan. 1. The amount represents about $18 per member and 11 bps of its ROA of 1.55% for the 12 months ending Sept. 30.

Goldenwest has delivered more than $27 million in Bonus Dividends to its members since 2004.

“The Bonus Dividend program continues to be a distinctive benefit of Goldenwest membership,” Chair Dan Musgrave said. “We extend our gratitude to our loyal members for their ongoing support, enabling us to uphold this tradition for two decades.”

So far this season, CU Times has tallied 20 credit unions ($68.9 billion, 3.7 million members) that have announced $154.2 million in special dividends. The amount represents about $42 per member and 23 bps of their 12-month ROA of 1.07%.

Credit unions interested in sharing their special dividend announcements can email them to JDuPlessis@cutimes.com.