The industry's drumbeat of new memberships and loan business stemming from banking's troubles and the flight to safety picked up new momentum last week with two state leagues, Washington and Mississippi, crowing about membership gains.
The Mississippi Credit Union Association attributed its first quarter 4.5% membership spurt–adding 24,000–to both its new "iBelong" awareness ad campaign and the impact of an interstate merger.
Still, "There's little doubt the banking crisis and all that's gone on down here with Wachovia and bank closures have made consumers shop around, bringing credit unions new members and new loans," said Cheryl Oggs, vice president of the trade group.
And in Washington State, first quarter statistics show a 40,000 increase in statewide membership compared to 20,000 for the same period a year ago. In its weekly newsletter, the Washington Credit Union League also cited increases in mortgage lending by CUs, calling it "another signal and further proof that the financial meltdown triggered by too-big-to-fail banks and greedy Wall Street traders was not the root cause of the public's affinity for credit unions."
The Mississippi group also pointed to the favorable CU image resulting from its "iBelong" TV and radio campaign started last January and licensed from the Pennsylvania Credit Union Association producing favorable impressions by four to one over unfavorable impressions among respondents.
Also, during the first quarter of 2009, Mississippi credit unions experienced a membership growth rate five times greater than the rate for all of 2008, said Oggs.
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