The fragility of the economy's recovery and the Federal Reserve's reluctance to raise rates has knocked credit union CEOs' confidence in their institutions' future down a couple notches, according to Catalyst Corporate Federal Credit Union's first quarter 2015 Credit Union CEO Confidence Survey.

The survey's overall confidence index fell from 32.64 in Q4 2014 survey to 30.22 in the most recent survey, the lowest mark in five quarters. The assessment regarding credit union and member financial condition, one of six measured in the survey, dropped from 39.55 to 32.16 – a decline of 7.39 percentage points – from the previous quarter.

“I think the uncertainty of when the Fed will raise rates, and by how much, has many in the market somewhat apprehensive,” Catalyst Strategic Solutions Advisory Service Vice President Steven Houle said. “Obviously, when the Fed does increase rates, higher costs for mortgages and car loans likely will follow. Considering how fragile the economic recovery is already, the big question on the minds of credit union CEOs is how consumers and credit union members will react. What will be their appetite for borrowing?”