Credit Union
We were disappointed to see the way the OCBJ interpreted Evangelical Christian Credit Union’s business results in your Nov. 15 credit union industry article, “Swelling Base.”
Your statements that profit at our credit union fell 10% (to $4.4 million) and that membership also fell 10% (to 1,433) were misleading.
The profit figure only was for the first six months of the year, and ignores annual performance and performance relative to our industry. At ECCU, earnings for the year ending Dec. 31, 2003 increased 15.6% year-to-year, to $8.62 million.
If you want to compare partial-year performance, there are better measurements, such as return on assets. ECCU’s ROA for the first six months of 2004 was 1.55%, compared with the peer group average of 0.95% (source: Callahan and Associates).
The membership figure doesn’t clearly tell the whole story of ECCU’s ongoing strategic transition from retail to commercial banking. Our focus to serve organizations (churches, Christian schools and ministries) has led to an intentional decline in individual membership,while at the same time, our corporate membership continues to grow. In Orange County, our corporate membership was up 5.3% at the end of June compared to June 2003.
Moreover, your report shows only OC membership, while ECCU’s membership is across the U.S. and in 100 other countries.
Michael Guess
Vice President, Marketing
Evangelical Christian Credit Union
Brea
