Navy Federal Credit Union

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Navy Federal Credit Union

Type	Credit Union
Founded	1933
Headquarters	Vienna, Virginia, USA
Key people	VADM John A. Lockard, Chairman Cutler Dawson, President
Area served	Navy and Marine Corps personnel and their families
Industry	Financial Services
Products	Savings; Checking; Consumer loans; Mortgages; Credit cards; Investments
Net income	$401.5M USD (2006)
Subsidiaries	Navy Federal Financial Group (CUSO)
Website	http://www.navyfcu.org

Navy Federal Credit Union (or Navy Federal) is a Federal credit union headquartered in Vienna, Virginia, chartered and regulated under the authority of the National Credit Union Administration (NCUA). Navy Federal is the largest natural member (or retail) credit union in the world, both in asset size and in membership. As of March 2007, Navy Federal had $28B USD in assets, and over 2.8 million members^[1].

1 History
2 Membership
3 Organization
4 Services
5 Competition
6 References
7 External links

[edit] History

Navy Federal was originally incorporated on January 17, 1933 of the Navy Department Employees' Credit Union of the District of Columbia (NDCU). Only Navy employees where were members of the Federal Employees' Union were eligible to join. The next year, President Roosevelt signed into law the Federal Credit Union Act, which would eventually become the basis of business for the credit union. In 1947, the credit union was officially dissolved and rechartered as a Federal credit union, named Navy Department Employees Federal Credit Union (NDEFCU). It also expanded membership to include all Navy personnel in the Washington, DC area, both military and civilian. It was not until 1951 that the day to day operations of the credit union were officially turned over to professional management; until that time, the Board of Directors were personally involved in each major financial decision and loan approval that the credit union made.

In 1954, the credit union changed its charter again to open membership to all Navy employees, regardless of geographic location, and changed its name to Navy Federal Credit Union. At first, only Officers were eligible; but eventually membership was opened to enlisted personnel as well. By 1962, the credit union reached a milestone, becoming the biggest credit union in the world, a distinction which it still holds today. The credit union moved into its current headquarters in Vienna, Virginia in 1977, eventually undergoing several major expansions of its facility there.

In 2003, the credit union opened its membership further, to include Navy contractors. There have also been several times in the credit union's history that NCUA has asked Navy Federal to merge with or absorb other credit unions that were experiencing financial or other difficulties. Members of these prior credit unions remained members of Navy Federal after the merger (following NCUA's policy of "once a member, always a member"). One of these instances included absorbing the credit union which served the U.S. Coast Guard Academy in Connecticut, with the result that to this day, students at the Academy are eligible to join Navy Federal, and to remain members for life, while actively-serving members of the Coast Guard are not.

[edit] Membership

As with all credit unions, membership in Navy Federal is limited to individuals sharing the common bond defined its credit union charter. Membership in Navy Federal is limited to:

All Department of the Navy (DON) personnel, regardless of location or rank, including:
- Active duty Navy and Marine Corps
- Reservist, regardless of drilling status
- Civilian employees
- Retired or Annuitant
DON Contractors assigned to U.S. Government sites afloat or ashore
DON Officer Candidate programs, NROTC, U.S. Naval Academy, U.S. Coast Guard Academy, U.S. Merchant Marine Academy
U.S. Government—Military and civilian personnel employed by the U.S. Government assigned to, stationed at or working at a Navy installation, afloat or ashore
Family members of those in the Field of Membership, including: Grandparents, Parents, Spouse, Siblings, Children (includes adopted, foster and stepchildren), Grandchildren, Household Members

[edit] Organization

Navy Federal is chartered with NCUA as a single-sponsor credit union, with its sponsor being the Department of the Navy. Like all credit unions, Navy Federal is governed by a Board of volunteers, elected by and from its membership. Navy Federal also has a separate subsidiary, named Navy Federal Financial Group, which operates as a Credit Union Service Organization. CUSOs were established by NCUA as a way for credit unions to pursue product offerings that would normally be outside of the purview of a credit union.

Navy Federal is a member of the Virginia Credit Union League, through which it is associated with the Credit Union National Association.

[edit] Services

Navy Federal offers the typical suite of account services offered by most financial institutions, including savings accounts, checking accounts, IRA accounts, and certificates of deposit. The savings product is named "Share Savings" to reflect the fact that a member's initial savings deposit ($5) literally represents their share of ownership in the credit union. Navy Federal also offers members consumer loans, credit cards, mortgages and home equity lines of credit, as well as some small business services. Navy Federal's CUSO, Navy Federal Financial Group, offers more extensive investment services, online brokerage, insurance, and real estate settlement services.

As of the end of 2006, Navy Federal had 115 branches and 313 ATMs, located both inside the United States and abroad. In addition, Navy Federal offers extensive online services via its corporate website, Navy Federal Online. Due to the nature of its membership (which includes actively deployed military personnel in every time zone), Navy Federal maintains 24-by-7 operations, both in its call centers and via its online services.

[edit] Competition

Navy Federal is not the only financial services company which specializes in serving the military. The credit union competes with other military credit unions, like Pentagon Federal Credit Union, as well as with some large banks including Bank Of America-Military Bank and USAA.