Penetration of vehicle loans at U.S. credit unions resumed growth in the second quarter after a rare decline in the first quarter.
Auto loan penetration, or the number of vehicle loans as a percentage of credit union members, ticked up 9 basis points from the linked quarter and 42 basis points from the year-ago period to 21.3%. Credit card penetration rose 5 basis points from the linked quarter and 22 basis points from the year-ago quarter to 17.6%.
The total number of vehicle loans increased 1.3% during the quarter. As of June 30, used vehicle loans accounted for 70.8% of all vehicle loans at credit unions.
Larger credit unions, or those with total assets greater than $3 billion, had the highest median vehicle and credit card penetration at 21.5% and 19.8%, respectively, at June 30.
Eleven of the largest 20 credit unions by vehicle loans reported a decrease in used vehicle loan penetration, while 13 reported a decrease in new vehicle loan penetration. The median for used vehicle loan penetration was up 6 basis points for the industry to 12.4%, while that for new vehicles was up 2 basis points to 3.5%.
The nation's largest credit union, Vienna, Va.-based Navy FCU, reported a 5-basis-point quarter-over-quarter decline in new vehicle loan penetration, while used vehicle loans were flat.
Atlanta-based Delta Community CU increased its used auto loan penetration by 70 basis points quarter over quarter to 27.4% as of June 30, the largest jump in the group, while Chicago-based Alliant CU saw the greatest decline in used vehicle loan penetration with a 68 basis point drop to 10.4%.

