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While credit union membership declined in the third quarter, Connecticut’s credit unions had one of the highest collective returns on average assets in the U.S., according to data released last week by the National Credit Union Administration.

The NCUA Quarterly Map Review showed that 83 percent of Connecticut’s federally insured credit unions had year-to-date positive net income as of Sept. 30, on par with the U.S. rate. In the second quarter, 81 percent of the state’s credit unions had positive net income compared to the national average of 79 percent.

Membership declined at a majority of Connecticut credit unions in the third quarter when compared to the third quarter of 2021. The state’s median membership growth rate was -0.5 percent, meaning that half of the state’s approximately 80 credit unions saw membership decline by 0.5 percent or more. The U.S. median rate was -0.2 percent. Washington, D.C., had the largest median decline at 1.5 percent, followed by Pennsylvania at 1.3 percent.

The NCUA said about 52 percent of U.S. federally insured credit unions had fewer members at the end of the third quarter compared to the same quarter in 2021. The U.S. credit unions with falling membership tended to be small, the NCUA said, with more than 60 percent having less than $50 million in assets. Credit unions headquartered in Alaska and Idaho had the highest median membership growth rates of 4.6 percent and 3.3 percent, respectively.

Connecticut credit unions had a median year-over-year asset growth of 2.7 percent compared to the U.S. median of 3.4 percent. The state’s credit unions in the second quarter had seen year-over-year asset growth of 2.9 percent compared to the U.S. median of 4.2 percent.

Connecticut had median annualized year-to-date return on average assets in the third quarter of 73 basis points, among the top five in the U.S. The U.S. median was 50 basis points. In the second quarter, the median annualized year-to-date ROAA had been at 54 basis points, while the U.S median was 42 basis points.

While the state’s credit unions continued to see deposit balances increase, the pace of growth has slowed. The median year-over-year deposit growth was 2.3 percent in Connecticut compared to the U.S. median of 3.7 percent. Connecticut in 2021 had a median year-over-year deposit growth of 8.6 percent, while the U.S. median that year was 9.6 percent.

Connecticut’s credit unions continued to see loan growth. The median year-over-year loan growth rate was 10.2 percent, similar to the U.S. median for the third quarter of 10.1 percent. The state’s median delinquency rate in the third quarter was 54 basis points, trailing the U.S. median of 40 basis points.