OCEAN CITY, Md.— For most credit unions, share growth has been abnormally strong since the economic crisis and corresponding consumers' flight to safety.
But credit unions under $10 million in assets are facing a very different problem: shares are running out, according to NCUA Region II Director Jane Walters.
During the Wednesday morning session at the Maryland & D.C. Credit Union Association's annual meeting, Walters noted that Maryland and Washington both have a lot of small credit unions, as does Region II in general.
"Every year for the last five or six years, we've seen shares go down," the regulator said of small credit unions. So far in 2011, half of credit unions under $10 million in assets are losing shares.
While recognizing the resource challenges small credit unions face, she also lamented that the agency was not sure how to further assist smaller credit unions and invited suggestions.
In response to a question on the matter, she said, "A lot of times we have a lot of longtime managers who just don't want to change. Or we have boards that way."
Walters told the MDDCCUA that share growth nationally is up around 7% annualized, and in Region II, it's up more than twice that at approximately 15%. Washington in particular has experienced share growth of about 8% annualized and Maryland is at around 13% share growth.
