National Credit Union Analysis

National Credit Union Industry

2026-Q2 4206 Credit Unions Skip to the TL;DR

Member Growth Stays Negative at the Average Credit Union — Every Tier Above $500M Keeps Growing

The national credit union industry delivered a standout profitability quarter in Q2 2026, with ROA surging to 0.89% — up from 0.67% in Q1 2026 and 0.74% a year ago — even as member growth remained negative for five consecutive quarters at -0.69%. NIM held steady near 3.74%, supporting earnings momentum. Asset growth stayed robust at 2.63%, extending an eight-quarter positive streak, while loan growth remained positive for a fourth straight quarter at 0.22%, recovering from -0.31% a year ago. The divergence between strong financials and persistent membership contraction raises urgent questions about long-term growth sustainability.

Small
< $100M
2437
credit unions
-1.6% members YoY
Mid-Small
$100M–$500M
1024
credit unions
-0.1% members YoY
Community
$500M–$1B
276
credit unions
+0.6% members YoY
Mid-Market
$1B–$5B
377
credit unions
+2.2% members YoY
Large
$5B–$10B
67
credit unions
+2.0% members YoY
Titans
> $10B
25
credit unions
+3.0% members YoY

Tier Scorecard

2026-Q2
Tier Asset Range CUs ROA NIM Member Growth YoY Asset Growth YoY Delinquency
Small < $100M 2437 0.89% 3.87% -1.6% 1.2% 0.88%
Mid-Small $100M–$500M 1024 0.85% 3.68% -0.1% 4.0% 0.77%
Community $500M–$1B 276 0.80% 3.51% +0.6% 4.6% 0.75%
Mid-Market $1B–$5B 377 0.83% 3.41% +2.2% 5.6% 0.77%
Large $5B–$10B 67 0.95% 3.19% +2.0% 6.3% 0.73%
Titans > $10B 25 1.03% 3.18% +3.0% 6.5% 1.02%

Tier Comparison

Return on Assets by Tier — 2026-Q2

Large credit unions lead profitability at 0.95% ROA; the Small tier trails at 0.89%.

Member Growth (YoY) by Tier — 2026-Q2

Member growth splits cleanly at $500M: Small (-1.6%) and Mid-Small (-0.1%) are shrinking while every larger tier grows, topping out at +3.0% for Titans.

Net Interest Margin by Tier — 2026-Q2

NIM remains highest among Small credit unions (3.87%) and lowest among Titans (3.18%), a reminder that scale advantages do not automatically translate into wider spreads.

Key Insights

Year-over-Year Changes

First Mortgage Concentration (%) (Absolute) ▲
2025-Q2 → 2026-Q2
21.61% → 22.22% (+0.61%)
Asset Growth (YoY) (Absolute) ▲
2025-Q2 → 2026-Q2
2.34% → 2.63% (+0.29%)
Share Certificate Concentration (%) (Absolute) ▲
2025-Q2 → 2026-Q2
19.15% → 20.02% (+0.87%)
Indirect Auto Concentration (%) (Absolute) ▼
2025-Q2 → 2026-Q2
7.98% → 7.71% (-0.26%)
Loan Growth (YoY) (Absolute) ▲
2025-Q2 → 2026-Q2
-0.31% → 0.22% (+0.53%)

Quarter-over-Quarter Changes

Net Charge-Off Rate (Absolute) —
2026-Q1 → 2026-Q2
0.35% → 0.38% (+0.03%)
First Mortgage Concentration (%) (Absolute) ▲
2026-Q1 → 2026-Q2
22.15% → 22.22% (+0.07%)
Asset Growth (YoY) (Absolute) —
2026-Q1 → 2026-Q2
2.64% → 2.63% (-0.01%)
Share Certificate Concentration (%) (Absolute) ▲
2026-Q1 → 2026-Q2
19.80% → 20.02% (+0.22%)
Indirect Auto Concentration (%) (Absolute) —
2026-Q1 → 2026-Q2
7.73% → 7.71% (-0.02%)

Key Metrics

Return on Assets

0.89%

▲ YoY
0 basis points below national
Profitability

Net Interest Margin

3.74%

▲ YoY
0 basis points below national
Profitability

Asset Growth

2.63%

▲ YoY
Growth

Member Growth

-0.69%

Growth

Delinquency Rate

0.88%

— YoY
Risk

Net Worth Ratio

13.81%

Risk

AMR Growth

2.13%

Engagement

Deposit Growth

2.16%

Growth

Loan Growth

0.22%

▲ YoY
Growth

Member Engagement

Member Growth (YoY %)

Member growth remained negative at -0.69% in Q2 2026, essentially unchanged from -0.65% in Q1 2026 (QoQ) and -0.65% in Q2 2025 (YoY) — marking five consecutive quarters of membership contraction since Q2 2025; the last positive reading was +1.96% in Q1 2025. The stability of the decline is itself a concern: there is no sign of a rebound materializing. The industry is retaining assets and loans without growing its membership base, suggesting deepening per-member engagement but a shrinking addressable community — a structural vulnerability for future organic growth. The divide is structural: Small (under $100M) and Mid-Small ($100M–$500M) credit unions posted member growth of -1.6% and -0.1% respectively, while every tier above $500M grew — from +0.6% (Community) to +3.0% (Titans).

Profitability

Return on Assets (%)

Net Interest Margin (%)

Profitability surged in Q2 2026, with ROA reaching 0.89% — a gain of 0.21 pp from 0.67% in Q1 2026 (QoQ) and 0.15 pp above the 0.74% recorded in Q2 2025 (YoY). NIM was stable quarter-over-quarter at 3.74%, edging up just 0.04 pp from 3.70% in Q1 2026, but increased 0.08 pp from 3.66% a year ago, reflecting gradual repricing benefits. Both ROA and NIM are precisely in line with the national benchmark of 0.89% and 3.74%, respectively, indicating the industry as a whole is performing at its own average — a solid but undifferentiated position.

Growth

Asset Growth (YoY %)

Member Growth (YoY %)

Asset growth held nearly flat quarter-over-quarter at 2.63% in Q2 2026, down just 0.01 pp from 2.64% in Q1 2026, while accelerating 0.29 pp from 2.34% in Q2 2025 (YoY) — extending a positive streak now eight quarters long since Q3 2024. Loan growth decelerated modestly to 0.22% in Q2 2026 from 0.31% in Q1 2026 (a 0.10 pp slowdown), but accelerated sharply versus the -0.31% recorded in Q2 2025, marking four consecutive quarters of positive loan growth since Q3 2025. The YoY recovery in lending is encouraging, though the QoQ deceleration warrants monitoring.

Risk & Credit Quality

Delinquency Rate (%)

Net Worth Ratio (%)

The risk profile showed modest deterioration in Q2 2026. Delinquency increased 0.10 pp quarter-over-quarter to 0.88% from 0.78% in Q1 2026, though it remained relatively stable year-over-year, up only 0.05 pp from 0.83% in Q2 2025. Charge-offs were stable at 0.38%, edging up just 0.03 pp from 0.35% in Q1 2026; year-over-year data is unavailable for comparison. Offsetting credit quality pressure, net worth strengthened to 13.81% — up 0.20 pp from 13.61% in Q1 2026 and up 0.37 pp from 13.44% in Q2 2025 — providing a solid capital buffer against rising delinquencies.

Portfolio Mix

First Mortgage (%)

Indirect Auto (%)

Share Certificates (%)

Portfolio composition shifted modestly in Q2 2026. First mortgage concentration edged up to 22.22%, gaining 0.07 pp from 22.15% in Q1 2026 (QoQ) and 0.61 pp from 21.61% in Q2 2025 (YoY), signaling continued emphasis on real estate lending. Share certificate concentration rose to 20.02%, up 0.22 pp from 19.80% in Q1 2026 and 0.87 pp from 19.15% a year ago, reflecting member preference for higher-yielding fixed-term deposits. Indirect auto concentration edged down to 7.71%, falling 0.02 pp from Q1 2026 and 0.26 pp from Q2 2025, suggesting a gradual pullback from that channel. All three metrics align exactly with national benchmarks.

Strategic Implications

  • • Five consecutive quarters of negative member growth demand urgent investment in acquisition channels — digital onboarding, community partnerships, and SEG expansion — before the membership base erodes further.
  • • The surge in ROA to 0.89% creates a rare window to deploy capital into technology and member experience improvements that could reverse the membership contraction trend before it becomes structural.
  • • Rising certificate concentrations (up 0.87 pp YoY to 20.02%) signal members are rate-sensitive and shopping for yield — credit unions must balance competitive deposit pricing against NIM preservation as rates evolve.
  • • Delinquency's 10-basis-point quarterly jump to 0.88% warrants proactive portfolio stress-testing, particularly in indirect auto (7.71%), where concentration has been declining but legacy vintage risk may be surfacing.
  • • The tier divergence in member growth — with Titans posting +2.96% while the industry contracts at -0.69% — suggests scale advantages are compounding; smaller credit unions should evaluate merger or CUSO collaboration strategies to compete for members.

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Notable Patterns

Tier Divergences

Total Assets: Tiers moving opposite directions (Community, Titans up vs Mid-Market, Large down)

Total Members: Tiers moving opposite directions (Large up vs Community, Mid-Market, Titans down)

Asset Growth (annual): 9pp spread (Titans at +9.8% vs Community at +1.1%)

Regional Outliers

AK: Net Worth Ratio is 62pp above national

WA: Mpe is 29pp below national

GU: First Mortgage Share is 24pp above national (also 3 other states)

Data Quality Notes

8 metric(s) had extreme values filtered using MAD-based, z-score > 5.0.

Total Delinquency Rate (60+ days) (Absolute) 202 CU(s) excluded
Raw average: 1.26% → Cleaned average: 0.88%
View excluded credit unions
Net Charge-Off Rate (Absolute) 136 CU(s) excluded
Raw average: 0.53% → Cleaned average: 0.38%
View excluded credit unions
Net Worth Ratio (Absolute) 111 CU(s) excluded
Raw average: 14.66% → Cleaned average: 13.81%
View excluded credit unions
Member Growth (YoY) (Absolute) 106 CU(s) excluded
Raw average: 15.67% → Cleaned average: -0.69%
View excluded credit unions
Return on Assets (ROA) (Absolute) 71 CU(s) excluded
Raw average: 1.23% → Cleaned average: 0.89%
View excluded credit unions
Loan Growth (YoY) (Absolute) 40 CU(s) excluded
Raw average: 78.26% → Cleaned average: 0.22%
View excluded credit unions
Asset Growth (YoY) (Absolute) 39 CU(s) excluded
Raw average: 3.30% → Cleaned average: 2.63%
View excluded credit unions
Net Interest Margin (NIM) (Absolute) 15 CU(s) excluded
Raw average: 3.76% → Cleaned average: 3.74%
View excluded credit unions
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