Credit Union Membership Eligibility Among Non-members

By Jon Haller
Director of Market Research
Credit Union National Assn.

Credit unions that experience rapid asset growth are considerably more likely to do so through attracting new members than through persuading its existing members to utilize more of its service offerings, according to a Filene Research Institute study.

Consistent with this, many credit unions have become more aggressive when it comes to growing their memberships. Some have targeted additional Select Employee Groups (SEGs) and/or looked to build membership from within their already existing SEGs.

But arguably the clearest example of credit unions’ desires to achieve significant membership growth can be seen with the dramatic 80% rise in the number of credit unions with community charters since mid- year 2000 (source: CUNA’s Operating Ratios and Spreads reports), representing the addition of millions of potential members..

All told, just over half (54%) of the nation’s adult non-members – equivalent to 37% of all U.S. adults and representing an estimated 78 million consumers – indicate they are nonetheless, indeed, eligible to join a credit union. This, according to CUNA’s upcoming 2006-2007 Survey of Potential Members: Opportunities and Challenges in Growing Your Membership Report, the companion study to CUNA’s 2006-2007 National Member Survey.

As such, credit unions theoretically have an opportunity to nearly double their membership counts above the current figure of over 87 million, based on CUNA Economics and Statistics estimates.

No less than about 40% of non-members from every age group indicate they are eligible to join a credit union, with the highest percentage of eligible non-members being found among those aged 18 to 34 (see figure).

Clearly, membership-growth opportunities exist in every age category. At the same time, though, the Survey of Potential Members Report goes on to point out that the high membership-eligibility level among eligible non-members aged 18 to 34 and general consumer borrowing trends strongly suggest that eligible young-adult non-members serve as a sizeable and very attractive – if not yet overly willing – group of potential members, and, it follows, potential borrowers.

• Click here to be notified by e-mail when the 2006-2007 Survey of Potential Members: Opportunities and Challenges in Growing Your Membership Report becomes available in late-June.

• Click here to be notified by e-mail when the 2006-2007 National Member Survey Report becomes available in late-June.

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