When it comes to ranking credit unions a lion share of the focus tends to be on “size”. The total membership or total assets of a credit union is what many of us tend to focus on. For this reason some of the most well-known brands in the industry belong to the credit unions that are simply the biggest. To be fair, some of this is warranted: the largest credit unions are oftentimes among the oldest and among the most successful, which is noteworthy. But an often-overlooked measure is how “rich” or more specifically how much value a credit union has generated over time. Because credit unions are private institutions, there isn’t a stock price or market capitalization. However, we can come close to assessing a credit union’s “worth” by looking at net worth as defined by the National Credit Union Association (NCUA) and comparing this to its membership base. This is the methodology we’ve employed to determine the 13 richest credit unions in the United States.
Below we start by reviewing the largest credit unions in the United States and provide rating details on what we view as the Big Six credit unions in the country. The idea is to provide context and a (hopefully) helpful point of comparison as we go through the list of the richest credit unions, which as you’ll see, are significantly less well known in most cases.
Reviewing the largest Credit Unions
One of the interesting conclusions from this exercise was the fact that none of the top 10 largest credit unions made the list. As a refresher, the below chart provides a summary of the 10 largest credit unions in the United States based on total members as of December 2021.
Clearly, breaching the threshold of a million members is a great achievement, and it is also what is required to break into the top 10 of credit unions. If we look at the largest credit unions organized by total assets, the answer is more or less the same with some minor changes at the lower end of the list.
In order to break into the top 10 by assets it requires almost $15 billion to break into the top 10. Taken together, the top 10 institutions have over 24 million members and control assets of over $400 billion.
The Big Six Credit Unions
Looking across both total membership and total assets, six credit unions stand out as having the most scale. Navy Federal Credit Union is more or less a household name, but we provide a quick summary of each in the below:
- Navy Federal Credit Union – by far the largest credit union in the country by a large margin and also one of the oldest having been established in 1947. We rate this credit union 3.4/5.0, which is a very good rating. The credit union also has a total net worth of $17 billion which equates to $1,570 per member, slightly below the national average.
- State Employees’ – this credit union primarily serves employees of the state of North Carolina, and was established in 1937, making it also one of the oldest credit unions in the country. We rate this credit union a 3.0 out of 5.0 which is above average. The credit union’s net worth ratio and delinquency rates are below and above comparable credit unions, respectively which is what drags down the credit union’s rating. The credit union has a total net worth of over $4 billion which equates to $1,592 per member, very slightly below the national average.
- Pentagon Federal Credit Union – this is one of a few large credit unions with an open mandate i.e. anyone can join. The credit union was established in 1935. We rate the credit union 2.3 out of 5.0, which is below average. The weaker metrics for the credit union are its loan to deposit ratio, delinquency rate and deposits per member. The credit union has a total net worth of over $3 billion which equates to $1,258 per member, well below the national average.
- Boeing Employees – the main category for membership is to live, work, worship or attend school in the state of Washington. The credit union was established in 1935. We rate the credit union 3.7 out of 5.0 which is a very good rating. The credit union has a total net worth of approximately $3 billion which equates to $2,207 per member, well above the national average.
- America First – this credit union has one of the more complex and extensive criteria for membership, which we go through here. The credit union was established in 1939. We rate the credit union 3.0 out of 5.0 which is an above average rating. The primary drawback to its overall rating is the credit union’s delinquency rate. The credit union has a total net worth of approximately $1.6 billion which equates to $1,325 per member, below the national average.
- SchoolsFirst – this is the largest education-focused credit union. Membership starts with active or retired school employees of the state of California. The credit union was only established in 1985 and is the youngest of the Big Six credit unions by a wide margin. We rate the credit union 3.9 out of 5.0 which is a very good rating and close to being exceptional. The credit union has a total net worth of approximately $2.6 billion which equates to $2,160 per member, well above the national average.
The 13 Richest Credit Unions
As noted earlier, we think the net worth of a credit union is a proxy for how “rich” a credit union is. As a reminder, net worth under the NCUA definition is mainly the accumulation of earnings by the credit union since its inception. Therefore, it is a good proxy of the wealth the credit union has generated over time. Since credit unions are owned by their members, looking at net worth per member is a great way to assess, track and benchmark the wealth of credit unions. The average credit union in the United States (of those regulated by the NCUA) had a net worth per member of $1,606 as of the quarter ended September 2021. The 13 credit unions discussed below had a net worth per member of more than five times the national average!
#1 – Maine Harvest
- Year Established: 2019
- Total Members: 72
- Total Assets: $3 million
- Total Net Worth: $2 million
- Net Worth Per Member: $25,088
- Our Rating: 4.0 out of 5.0
#2 – Self Reliance NY
- Year Established: 1951
- Total Members: 14,982
- Total Assets: $1,514 million
- Total Net Worth: $242 million
- Net Worth Per Member: $16,137
- Our Rating: 3.3 out of 5.0
#3 – Long Beach Firemen’s
- Year Established: 1936
- Total Members: 3,289
- Total Assets: $233 million
- Total Net Worth: $45 million
- Net Worth Per Member: $13,761
- Our Rating: 4.3 out of 5.0
#4 – California Lithuanian
- Year Established: 1969
- Total Members: 1,866
- Total Assets: $163 million
- Total Net Worth: $24 million
- Net Worth Per Member: $12,754
- Our Rating: 4.4 out of 5.0
#5 – Workmen’s Circle Incorporated
- Year Established: 1992
- Total Members: 1,600
- Total Assets: $103 million
- Total Net Worth: $20 million
- Net Worth Per Member: $12,592
- Our Rating: 4.7 out of 5.0
#6 – Lisbon Farmers Union
- Year Established: 1945
- Total Members: 239
- Total Assets: $4 million
- Total Net Worth: $3 million
- Net Worth Per Member: $11,691
- Our Rating: 3.4 out of 5.0
#7 – WCLA
- Year Established: 1984
- Total Members: 1,308
- Total Assets: $95 million
- Total Net Worth: $15 million
- Net Worth Per Member: $11,300
- Our Rating: 3.7 out of 5.0
#8 – Star One
- Year Established: 1956
- Total Members: 115,935
- Total Assets: $10,875 million
- Total Net Worth: $1,223 million
- Net Worth Per Member: $10,552
- Our Rating: 4.3 out of 5.0
#9 – Merck Employees
- Year Established: 1936
- Total Members: 24,935
- Total Assets: $2,395 million
- Total Net Worth: $253 million
- Net Worth Per Member: $10,137
- Our Rating: 3.3 out of 5.0
#10 – Brotherhood
- Year Established: 1934
- Total Members: 5,091
- Total Assets: $116 million
- Total Net Worth: $45 million
- Net Worth Per Member: $8,820
- Our Rating: 3.7 out of 5.0
#11 – Hoboken School Employees
- Year Established: 1937
- Total Members: 1,704
- Total Assets: $66 million
- Total Net Worth: $15 million
- Net Worth Per Member: $8,794
- Our Rating: 4.1 out of 5.0
#12 – Southern FCU
- Year Established: 1954
- Total Members: 3,618
- Total Assets: $88 million
- Total Net Worth: $32 million
- Net Worth Per Member: $8,768
- Our Rating: 2.9 out of 5.0
- Southern FCU has the lowest rating of the credit unions on this list mainly because of the trends in its membership. Over the past 5 years, the credit union’s membership has declined by 17% and importantly has declined every single year.
#13 – IDB Global
- Year Established: 1961
- Total Members: 10,372
- Total Assets: $731 million
- Total Net Worth: $87 million
- Net Worth Per Member: $8,397
- Our Rating: 3.6 out of 5.0
Closing Thoughts
We think monitoring the progression of the net worth of a credit union is a great way to measure the performance of these entities, especially relative to the union’s membership base. While there is a lot of focus on credit union size, we think there is too little focus on fundamental performance, which is important not just for credit union operators but current and potential members as well. That said, net worth and net worth per member are just two ways of assessing performance out of several that we consider and an even large number of measures that exist. Finally, our disclaimer: please be aware that none of the information presented herein is meant to be investment advice or advice of any form. All the information and views expressed in this note and on this site are purely for informational purposes.