Commenter: AnonymousJanuary 27, 2025 at 8:22 PM
"So LGFCU, a strategic partner of SECU since it was forced to break off into its own entity, has offered its members commercial lending for decades. They have been successful. Are you saying SECU’s strategic partner (soon to be ex-strategic partner) somehow had the ability to learn the business, but SECU does not?"
✅ Readers have grown to question the authenticity and accuracy of some commenters (an anonymouse enjoys full protection from accountability!) But many statements just don't make sense or just don't add up. But let's accept this comment as accurate (perhaps even the "forced" out remark!) and see how LGFCU and CIVIC have "succeeded" in commercial lending "for decades". Need to look at both credit unions since they are (and have been) one and the same - LGFCU is now known as CIVIC FCU.
Apologize for being "officious", but here are the official financial #'s. According to NCUA: LGFCU at 12/31/2023 [12/24 not yet available]:
As you can (barely) see over the "decades", LGFCU - with a membership of 400,000+ - now has a total of 470 commercial loans and lines of credit, out of 166,210 total loans of all types (after "decades" of trying) - which is @ one quarter of 1% of loans . Balances are < 5% of total loans. The average loan is @ $370,000+ - not exactly your small, "basic", mom-and-pop business loan.
As to CIVIC : The credit union was formed seven years ago in 2017. In those seven years, CIVIC has attracted 7,600 members and has 48 commercial loans out of a total of 2360 - @ 2%. Balances are @$23 million (@23%) with an average loan balance of $479,000 - mom and pop are doing well!
Been trying to ask the SECU Board for over three years: What type of commercial loans do you intend to offer? Where? In what amounts? Why? Have you done your homework - independently?
😎 Guess the next question is: "If LGFCU/CIVIC is a reasonable comparison, is the cost of offering commercial loans to 1/4% of the SECU membership (@ 40,000 members) a prudent investment? Will 1/4% be our measure of success after a couple of decades, too?
... we gonna outbank those "know nothing" bankers, for sure!
"Pride goeth before the whatever"...
