Credit Unions and the Irish Economy

Ireland has one of the highest levels of credit union member penetration in the world with circa 3.5 million members.

Credit unions have a not-for-profit volunteer ethos and community focus with approximately 3,000 volunteers involved in the sector.

Credit unions have been ranked Number 1 in Customer Experience Excellence for seven years straight.

Credit unions have been working hard to provide an expanded range of services to members including current accounts, debit cards, and mortgages.

As at 31 December 2021, there were 212 active credit unions with assets of approximately €20 billion and membership of around 3.5 million.

66 credit unions have assets greater than €100m and collectively account for 68% of sector assets.

Credit unions are very liquid with an average liquidity ratio of 37% and average regulatory reserves of 16%. Average arrears are now 3%.

As with most financial institutions in the current low interest rate environment, credit unions need to increase lending having an average loan to asset ratio of 27%.

The role of Minister for Finance is to ensure that the legal framework for credit unions is appropriate.

The Registrar of Credit Unions at the Central Bank is the independent regulator for credit unions in Ireland.

The key representative bodies and stakeholders are:

• Irish League of Credit Unions (ILCU) – more than 300 credit unions in the Republic of Ireland and Northern Ireland are members of ILCU.
• Credit Union Development Association (CUDA) – has 16 owner member credit unions and also provides affinity membership for a number of additional credit unions
• Credit Union Managers Association (CUMA) – represents credit union managers in Ireland
• National Supervisors Forum (NSF) – supports board oversight committees in the Republic of Ireland and supervisory committees in Northern Ireland
• Credit Union Advisory Committee (CUAC) is a statutory body providing advice to the Minister for Finance on credit union matters