Weiss Ratings: Over 2,500 U.S. Credit Unions Considered Weak

JUPITER, Florida (March 15, 2011) — While the nation’s 7,500 credit unions generally offer lower cost banking services to consumers, 2,573, or 34.3%, are included on Weiss Ratings’ “Weakest List,” while only 760, or 10.1%, are on the “Strongest List.”

Weiss Ratings, the nation’s independent provider of bank and insurance company ratings, has now also begun issuing financial strength ratings on the nation’s credit unions to help consumers avoid high-risk institutions and find those that are most likely to survive even in difficult times.

 “On the heels of the worst year for bank failures since 1992, plus the latest round of new bank fees for everyday services, many consumers may consider credit unions an attractive alternative,” commented Martin D. Weiss, president of Weiss Ratings. “But consumers should avoid the weakest institutions and seek to do business strictly with the strongest.”

Following a pattern similar to its bank and thrift ratings, Weiss Ratings’ new credit union ratings analyze each institution’s capitalization, asset quality, profitability, and liquidity to determine financial strength.

The largest credit unions on the Weiss Ratings Weakest List (receiving ratings of D+ or lower) are:

Weakest U.S. Credit Unions (with $2 billion or more in assets)
Credit Union	Location	Weiss Financial Strength Rating	Assets ($bil)
Suncoast Schools FCU	Tampa, FL	D-	5.0
America First FCU	Riverdale, UT	D	5.0
Kinecta FCU	Manhattan Beach, CA	D+	3.5
Space Coast CU	Melbourne, FL	D	3.1
Desert Schools FCU	Phoenix, AZ	D-	2.9
Mountain America FCU	West Jordan, UT	D+	2.8
Wescom Central CU	Pasadena, CA	E-	2.7

Weiss Financial Strength Rating: A=Excellent; B=Good; C=Fair; D=Weak; E=Very Weak

The largest credit unions on Weiss Ratings’ Strongest List (receiving a B+ or better) are:

Strongest U.S. Credit Unions (with $4 billion or more in assets)
Credit Union	Location	Weiss Financial Strength Rating	Assets ($bil)
Navy FCU	Vienna, VA	B+	42.9
Alliant CU	Chicago, IL	B+	7.5
Star One CU	Sunnyvale, CA	A+	5.3
San Diego County CU	San Diego, CA	A-	5.0
Citizens Equity First CU	Peoria, IL	A-	4.4
Randolph-Brooks FCU	Live Oak, TX	A+	4.1

Weiss Financial Strength Rating: A=Excellent; B=Good; C=Fair; D=Weak; E=Very Weak

Weiss Ratings’ complete lists of the strongest and weakest credit unions are available at www.weissratings.com/creditunionlists. 

About Weiss Ratings

Weiss Ratings, the nation’s independent provider of bank, credit union and insurance company financial strength ratings, accepts no payments for its ratings from rated institutions. It also distributes independent investment ratings on the shares of thousands of publicly traded companies, mutual funds, closed-end funds and ETFs.

 

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Note to Editors: State-specific lists of credit union ratings are available upon request.