by
Catalyst Corporate | Oct 06, 2023
As seasons change, so does the financial landscape, leaving today’s credit unions with an abundance of new challenges to navigate. Results from Catalyst Corporate’s recent Member Insights Survey (MIS) show that attracting deposits and managing liquidity emerged as credit union professionals' top-rated objectives this year.
Among other questions, Catalyst's survey asked, “From your perspective, what are your credit union’s top challenges?” Responses to the available options were:
- Attracting deposits (160)
- Managing liquidity (97)
- Mitigating fraud (96)
- Generating fee income (82)
- Offering self-service technologies (79)
- Generating loans (77)
- Supporting faster payments (52)
- Overcoming net worth constraints (34)
- Other challenges (18)
This year's results represent a true sign of the times with "Attracting deposits" and "Managing liquidity" cementing the top two spots. Interestingly, "Attracting deposits" scored nearly double last year's top response, which was "Generating fee income." New to the survey and coming in third place was "Mitigating fraud."
“New concerns reflect the fast-changing financial environment credit unions now face,” said Mike McGinnis, Catalyst's chief investment officer. "The current economy's impact on credit union liquidity is obvious, with the reorder of the top three challenges.”
"Over the last year credit unions have implemented numerous progressive strategies to attract deposits and the survey results clearly indicate liquidity and attracting deposits will be a continued focus for the remainder of the year and into 2024," McGinnis said. "The higher priority placed on mitigating fraud shows credit unions are carefully attuned to battling additional losses of income."
Another section of the survey gave credit unions an opportunity to evaluate their partnership with Catalyst and Catalyst's assistance in meeting their needs. A total of 261 responses was received in this area, with 95.7% of respondents saying Catalyst meets their needs well or very well.
To help credit unions prepare for success in 2024, Catalyst hosted a Fireside Chat with Catalyst executives at the Economic & Payments Forum. Members of Catalyst's senior management team shared some of their strategic goals for the year ahead. From faster payments, AI and fraud mitigation to managing liquidity and attracting deposits, this timely event echoed the focal points of the MIS.
Each year, the MIS provides valuable feedback that allows Catalyst to better serve credit unions. Catalyst makes adjustments based on the assessment to ensure it offers a portfolio of products and services that are responsive to credit union needs.
See more results of the 2023 Member Insights Survey and check out key takeaways from the Forum 2023 Fireside Chat.