There’s no doubt, the credit union movement is alive and well in this country and around the world. The World Council of Credit Union’s (WOCCU’s) recent figures show credit unions continue to grow globally, with 208 million people served by 57,000 credit unions in 103 countries. Credit unions in the U.S. also recently celebrated (and have now surpassed) the significant milestone of serving 100 million members.
WOCCU has broken down this growth by regions, with Asia, Latin America and Europe enjoying the fastest growth in terms of credit union membership. Overall in 2013, worldwide membership grew by more than 7 million new members.
According to the report, worldwide, credit unions represent:
- $1.4 trillion in savings & shares
- $1.1 trillion in loans
- $171 billion in reserves
- $1.7 trillion in assets
Despite reports of such strong growth, credit unions all over the world continue to face some of the same obstacles.
“Large, small, emerging and mature systems, regardless of their differences, all reported the same top challenges: increased regulatory burden, payments innovation, young adult membership growth and small credit union sustainability,” WOCCU President/CEO Brian Branch said in the report.
The AMC family of companies is helping credit unions tackle these challenges head-on. PolicyWorks is unburdening the regulatory compliance teams at credit unions across the U.S. The Iowa Credit Union League and Coopera are helping small and large credit unions serve entirely new markets (and receiving great recognition for doing so). TMG is working alongside credit unions to drive new payments technology. (I explore the subject of financial industry innovation in a newly released white paper, Reimagined Banking in the Age of the Consumer.)
WOCCU is also working to put together valuable resources within the global community. They will address the specific challenges in the following ways:
- Regulation — defending credit unions to international regulatory committees
- Payment innovation — helping credit unions implement mobile technology offerings
- Increase youth membership — hosting webinars, workshops and other educational events to establish and make accessible effective policies for credit unions to successfully attract younger members
- Sustainability — assisting in the creation of joint-owned, shared-use payments platforms and systems, potentially cutting the cost of small credit unions’ access to these solutions in half
As credit unions continue to broaden their impact on the overall financial landscape, it’s an honor to be involved in the credit union movement. TMG is proud to support the valuable role our credit union clients play in serving their members and championing the credit union difference.