A new survey from financial services companyCountry Financial shows millennials aren’t very optimistic aboutthe U.S. economy or even their own financial futures, but someindustry pros say that translates into huge opportunities for credit unions.

The survey, conducted just after the electionand released after the New Year, found that Americans as a wholehaven’t changed much since December 2015 regarding how they feelabout their overall personal financial security. But more than anyother generation alive today, millennials report less financialsecurity and expect the U.S. economy to decline in 2017, accordingto the survey.

“When polled about their view on the U.S. economic outlook for 2017 after theoutcome of the recent presidential elections, 41% of millennialsfelt that they would be 'worse off' than 2016, with close to athird (30%) predicting the economy would be 'a lot worse off.' Instark contrast, all other generations felt more optimistic witheach generation feeling 'better off' than they do 'worse off,’” thesurvey said.

The survey also asked respondents to ratetheir personal financial security on a scale of 0 to 100, with 100indicating the highest level of financial security.

Though the overall index score stayedessentially flat for the year, moving from 66.6 to 66.8 between2015 and 2016, the score among millennials was just 60.9 — thelowest among all the age groups polled. Older respondents weresignificantly more optimistic: the score was 66.6 for Gen Xrespondents (ages 35-49), 69.2 for Baby Boomers (ages 50-64), and71.2 for the Silent Generation (ages 65+). Excluding millennials,the average index score rose from 68.0 last year to 68.7, CountryFinancial reported.

The survey also found that 59% of millennialssaid their overall level of financial security was fair or poorcompared to 37% reporting “excellent” or “good.” About half ofmillennials (48%) said they couldn’t afford to save or invest and 29%weren’t sure whether they would be able to repay their debts ontime.

Cooperative Credit Union AssociationPresident/CEO Paul Gentile said much of the downtrodden outlookamong millennials stems from their distrust of big banks and WallStreet. Credit unions have an opportunity to capitalize onthe disparity, he said.

“Credit unions are in thefinancial services industry, but our story, our value propositionand our goals are much different. We have an opportunity to explain our valueproposition — not only structurally with ournot-for-profit status and cooperative nature — but also that we area much better deal than banks,” he said. “We can play a role ingetting them to trust financial services again and hopefully thatwill brighten their outlook, and turn them into lifelong creditunion members."

Carolinas Credit Union League VP ofPublic Relations and Communications Brandon Pugh also sees thesurvey results as a chance to make a meaningful pitch tomillennials.

“Since credit unions put people first,this looks to be a great opportunity for connecting with youngergenerations and offering reassurance,” he said. “It’sunderstandable that millennials are especially sensitive to ever-present concerns expressedin mainstream and social media. By offeringlife-stage and historical economic perspective — in groupactivities, one-on-one conversations or their own communications —credit unions can reinforce confidence and trust among millennialmembers and communities.”

Amid the demoralized outlook among millennialsin the Country Financial survey, there was one hint of optimism,however: 50% felt they’ll have enough money to retire comfortablywhen the time comes.