“We’re taking a different approach this year,” Mecca said. “Rather than issuing a one-time dividend that only benefits some members, our focus has shifted into putting resources back into things that all members have the opportunity to benefit from, every day, all year long. We’ve been doing this in the form of higher rates on deposits, reducing fees and investments into new member-facing services.”

For example, he said:

• In 2024 Coastal increased rates on money market accounts, “and our certificate rates were among the highest in the market.”
• On the fee side, Coastal eliminated some personal and business fees. “A bigger impact will be next week when we change our overdraft program. We’re reducing, capping and changing the triggers for both overdraft and NSF fees,” he said.
• Coastal also made several digital enhancements last fall and Mecca said it will be converting its digital banking platform later this year.

ORNL Federal Credit Union of Oak Ridge, Tenn. ($4.2 billion in assets, 217,657 members) made a similar decision last year.

Jessica Emert, ORNL’s vice president for brand and corporate relations, said its annual special dividend had been based on members’ average loan and deposit balances.

“However, analysis showed that this model disproportionately benefited members with higher balances. To create a more equitable approach the credit union opted to suspend the special dividend,” she said.

ORNL juiced services in several areas that Emert said saved members a combined $6.9 million in 2024. Its last special dividend was $5 million paid in October 2023.

Emert said last year’s enhancements included:

• Creating a Spending Plus account with no monthly fee and paying 4% APY on balances up to $5,000.
• Reduced fees for non-sufficient funds from $35 to $25, and for overdrafts from $35 to $15.
• Eliminated incoming wire fees.
• Increased the debit card per swipe reward for members with Digital Spending accounts from $0.02 to $0.05.

Meanwhile, CU Times continues to track special dividends and has more to report before the end of the season, which we judge to be from roughly October through March.

They include Nusenda Credit Union of Albuquerque, N.M. ($4.9 billion, 277,205 members), which paid members $8.8 million Jan. 30 as Earn Your Return bonus dividends. The amount represents about $32 per member and 19 basis points of its 0.71% return on average assets for the 12 months ending Sept. 30. Since 2009, Nusenda returned more than $82 million to members in special dividends.

“At Nusenda, we take pride in supporting our members on their financial journey,” President/CEO Joe Christian said.

“This year’s member dividend payouts, totaling over $8.8 million, reflect our ongoing dedication to delivering value back to those who choose Nusenda,” Christian said. “These programs are a testament to the strength and stability of the credit union and the incredible participation of our members.”

Four other credit unions paying special dividends were:

• Michigan Legacy Credit Union of Wyandotte, Mich. ($210.8 million in assets, 20,549 members), which paid members $350,679 throughout 2024 as a Patronage 365 dividend. The amount represents about $17 per member and 16 bps of its ROA of 0.73% for the 12 months ending Sept. 30.
• Priority First Federal Credit Union of DuBois, Pa. ($152.3 million in assets, 16,214 members), which paid members $300,000 Jan. 15 as a Loyalty Bonus Dividend. The amount represents about $19 per member and 21 bps of its ROA of 2.21% for the 12 months ending Sept. 30.
• Wymar Federal Credit Union of Geismar, La. ($151 million, 5,048 members), which is paying members $300,000 in February as a special dividend. The amount represents about $59 per member and 20 bps of its ROA of 0.89% for the 12 months ending Sept. 30.
• White Sands Federal Credit Union of Las Cruces, N.M. ($395.1 million, 30,788 members), which paid members $50,000 in January as a bonus dividend rebate. The amount represents about $2 per member and 1 bps of its ROA of 1.21% for the 12 months ending Sept. 30.

But wait! There’s more.

Blogger and credit union veteran Chip Filson reported that Thrivent Federal Credit Union of Appleton, Wis. ($805.1 million in assets, 51,589 members) is paying members $76 million May 31 as a special dividend on conversion of the credit union back to a bank (it’s complicated). The amount represents about $1,473 per member and 926 bps of its ROA of 0.50% for the 12 months ending Sept. 30.

Including Thrivent’s close-out special dividend, CU Times’ tally for the season consists of 50 credit unions ($128.4 billion, 6.7 million members) that have announced $366.1 million in special dividends. The amount represents about $55 per member and 30 bps of their 12-month ROA of 0.94%.

After Coastal’s final $4 million special dividend a year ago, CU Times had tallied 51 credit unions that announced $322.2 million in special dividends. The credit unions comprised $134.1 billion in assets and 7.3 million members as of Sept. 30, 2023, or 6% of the movement’s assets and 5% of its members. The 2023-2024 special dividends represented about $44 per member and 25 bps of their 12-month ROA of 1.03%.

Credit unions interested in sharing their special dividend announcements can email them to [email protected].