The long, difficult economic recovery from the Great Recession is leading more credit unions to return to their roots of serving the underserved. All financial institutions, it seems, are in constant competition to attract the shrinking ranks of the middle class and the growing upper middle class, making it even more difficult for many small and midsize credit unions to compete against the "convenience factor" of big and super-regional banks.

Because most financial institutions are essentially ignoring the low- to moderate-income consumer market, credit unions are seeing opportunities for growth. Experts explained why and how they are expanding their outreach to members and prospective members with low to moderate means through new products and services by leveraging grants, community partnerships and secondary capital.

It's no accident that more than one-third of credit unions now have a low-income designation.