At the end of April, U.S. credit unions and the federal government held a combined $1.611 trillion in consumer debt, accounting for 42.1% of all consumer debt, up from 40.7% a year earlier and 31.3% in April 2013, according to the Federal Reserve's G.19 Consumer Credit report from July 9.

Thanks to soaring student loans, consumer debt held by the U.S. government has grown by 76.9% over the last five years. Meanwhile, consumer debt at U.S. credit unions has grown by 72.1%. Consumer debt held by finance companies has actually dropped by almost 21% in five years.

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