The National Credit Union Administration (NCUA) commemorated the 90th anniversary of the Federal Credit Union Act of 1934, signed into law by President Franklin Delano Roosevelt, which authorized the formation of federally chartered credit unions in all states.
“With the Federal Credit Union Act turning 90 years old today, it’s appropriate to consider not only where we’ve been, but also where we are now and where we’re headed,” said NCUA Chairman Todd M. Harper. “The passage of the Federal Credit Union Act was a watershed moment in our nation’s history. But, just as that law was forward-thinking when enacted nearly a century ago, it must evolve to reflect current realities with an eye to the future.”
“The Federal Credit Union Act is the rare legislation that’s still important 90 years later,” NCUA Vice Chairman Kyle Hauptman said. “Credit unions themselves have been in America for 115 years. Our job at the NCUA is to ensure that Americans can continue to have a wide array of unique options for their banking needs.”
NCUA Board Member Tanya Otsuka remarked, “The Federal Credit Union Act, signed in 1934, laid the groundwork for today’s $2.3 trillion credit union system that serves millions of members. Today, we celebrate the growth of our cooperative credit system while recommitting ourselves to making sure it lives up to its original purpose of providing savings and credit to people of modest means.”
The NCUA marked the anniversary with a gathering of former NCUA Board Members at its headquarters and a panel discussion reflecting on the federal system of cooperative credit created in 1934.
In his remarks, Chairman Harper noted both “bright spots” and “hotspots” within the credit union system. Bright spots include resilience and performance and the dedication of NCUA employees to protecting credit unions’ safety and soundness and consumers. Hotspots include fintech use, data privacy concerns, integrity issues, cybersecurity threats, and automated bias concerns facing both the credit union system and financial services industry. Harper identified two blind spots preventing full potential: electronic payment losses and NCUA’s lack of vendor authority.
“The good news is that hotspots and blind spots can become bright spots with the right measures in place,” Harper said.
To mark this milestone throughout the year, NCUA will engage in a digital outreach initiative. A historical timeline detailing credit union and NCUA history is available on NCUA.gov along with highlighted historical content on social media channels.
The Federal Credit Union Act also established a federal agency to oversee national-level credit unions. Initially placed under the Farm Credit Administration as the Federal Credit Union Division, it eventually evolved into what is now known as NCUA since its creation in 1970. This evolution included creating the National Credit Union Share Insurance Fund in 1970 to protect share deposits for nearly 140 million Americans; prior to this fund's establishment, credit unions operated without federal deposit insurance.
As of March 31, 2024, there are over 4,500 federally insured credit unions serving more than 140 million members with assets totaling $2.31 trillion.
The NCUA is an independent federal agency created by Congress to regulate, charter, and supervise federal credit unions. It operates with full faith and backing from the United States government through managing the National Credit Union Share Insurance Fund which insures deposits for over 135 million account holders across federal and most state-chartered credit unions while also protecting consumers through public education on consumer protection and financial literacy issues.
For media inquiries:
Joe Adamoli
JAdamoli@ncua.gov
703-518-6572
