Credit union lending showed another small gain in February on the strength of mortgages and home equity lines of credit, according to data released Wednesday by America's Credit Unions.
Credit union members increased their credit card balances in February from a year earlier, but the pace slowed significantly and fell behind banks for the first time in 16 months, according to Fed data released Tuesday.
AmCU's loan estimates drawn from Equifax data, which excludes commercial loans, showed total credit union loans at the end of February were 1.9% greater than a year earlier. The balance was down 0.2% from Jan. 31, compared with the 10-year average January-to-February gain of 0.2%.
First mortgages rose 0.6% from a year earlier and fell 0.2% from January, countering the 10-year average gain of 0.2%.
Second mortgages rose 6.4% from a year earlier and fell 0.1% from January, matching the 10-year average drop.
HELOCs rose 13.8% from a year earlier and rose 1% from January, an improvement from the 10-year average gain of 0.4%.
The strength in real estate was countered by continuing weakness of auto loans, which account for 25% to 30% of total loans, unsecured personal loans and loans secured by boats and other things.
Auto loans grew 0.4% from a year earlier and the balance was essentially unchanged from January, compared with the 10-year average gain of 0.4%.
Secured personal loans fell 0.9% from a year earlier and fell 0.7% from January, steeper than the 10-year average drop of 0.2%.
Unsecured personal loans rose 2.2% from a year earlier and fell 0.7% from January, compared with the 10-year average gain of 0.1%.
For credit cards, the Federal Reserve's G-19 Consumer Credit Report showed banks last led credit unions for balance growth from February 2024 through October 2024 – with a few exceptions.
Then the tide shifted. Credit union balances have continued growing at a gradually slowing rate, while bank balances actually shrank from December 2024 through November 2025.
But credit card balances at banks have been growing for the past three months, and in February bank growth surpassed credit union growth.
Tuesday's G-19 showed credit unions held $86.5 billion in credit card debt Feb. 28, up 1.4% from a year earlier. It was the smallest 12-month gain since September 2021's 0.9% gain, which was just as credit cards began recovering from a plunge from May 2020 through June 2021 at the height of the COVID-19 pandemic.
The balance fell 2.5% from January to February, steeper than the 10-year average January-to-February fall of 0.8%. Credit unions' share of credit card balances among all U.S. lenders was 6.8% in February, unchanged from January and February 2025.
Banks held $1.2 trillion in credit card debt Feb. 28, up 2% from a year earlier. The balance fell 1.5% from January to February, about on par with the 10-year average of drop of 1.6%. Banks' share was 91.9% in February, unchanged from January and up from 91.8% in February 2025.
Finance companies held $16.2 billion in credit card debt, down 6.5% from a year earlier and down 0.3% from January to February, milder than the 10-year average drop of 2.7%.
Contact Jim DuPlessis at Jim.DuPlessis@arc-network.com.
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