There are 514 federally insured credit unions nationwide with a “minority depository institution” (MDI) designation, counting 3.9 million members and holding assets of $40.5 billion, their federal regulator said Friday in releasing its 2019 annual report on the institutions.
The report from the National Credit Union Administration (NCUA) also notes that about 10% of all federally insured credit unions are MDIs, and those are generally small: 57% of have less than $10 million in assets.
“The recent protests across America and the COVID-19 pandemic, which has disproportionately affected minority communities, have illustrated the economic and financial challenges of minority, rural, and underserved communities,” NCUA Board Chairman Rodney Hood said in a release. “These events underscore the importance of MDI credit unions to their communities, and the NCUA has and will continue to find more avenues of support for these institutions.”
Hood also noted Friday was the 155th anniversary of Juneteenth, which he called the most widely recognized observance of the end of slavery in the United States. “As the nation celebrates this year’s Juneteenth, we must recommit ourselves to the principles of diversity, equity, and inclusion, which are necessary to foster and promote greater opportunity for all Americans,” Hood said. “As we reflect on the enormous significance of this day and what it represents, it should also remind us how much further we must go.”
NCUA’s Hood: Juneteenth Compels Us to Advance the Goal of Financial Inclusion