StratEdge Research · H1 2026 (Jan–Jun, year-to-date)
The StratEdge Credit Union Index
In the first half of 2026, U.S. credit unions spent 68.4 cents of every revenue dollar on operating overhead — and the smallest institutions spent 14.4 points more than their billion-dollar peers. A benchmark of operating friction, built from 4,299credit unions' public NCUA Call Reports.
· Updated October 2026 · Data as of (NCUA 5300 cycle 6/30/2026, released )
68.4%
Industry efficiency ratio (overhead / revenue), H1 2026
80.2%
Efficiency ratio, credit unions < $50M
65.9%
Efficiency ratio, credit unions $1B+
3.12%
Operating expense as a share of total assets (annualized)
Key finding
Operating friction falls as credit unions scale
The smallest credit unions spent 80.2¢ of every revenue dollar on operating overhead in H1 2026, versus 65.9¢ at $1B+ peers — a 14.4-point gap, up from 10.9 points in H1 2025. Credit unions under $500M became less efficient year over year, while those above $500M became more efficient.
< $50M
1,906 credit unions
80.2%
$50M–$500M
1,634 credit unions
78.6%
$500M–$1B
280 credit unions
75.4%
$1B+
479 credit unions
65.9%
Efficiency ratio by asset size — cents of operating overhead per $1 of revenue. Vertical line marks the industry-wide 68.4%; lower is more efficient. Source: NCUA 5300 Call Report Quarterly Data, cycle 6/30/2026, released 14 September 2026 (n = 4,299 credit unions).
Friction by asset size
| Asset size | Credit unions | Total assets | Members | Efficiency ratio | H1 2025 | Op. exp / assets | Members / FTE |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| < $50M | 1,906 | $33.6B | 3.2M | 80.2% | 78.4% | 3.76% | 391 |
| $50M–$500M | 1,634 | $288.8B | 19.3M | 78.6% | 77.2% | 3.78% | 329 |
| $500M–$1B | 280 | $201.3B | 12.2M | 75.4% | 77.3% | 3.59% | 337 |
| $1B+ | 479 | $1.999T | 112.6M | 65.9% | 67.6% | 2.96% | 429 |
Efficiency ratios are H1 2026 and H1 2025 year-to-date (January–June). Operating expense / assets is annualized (H1 × 2) on period-end assets. Industry: 68.4% in H1 2026 vs 69.9% in H1 2025. Gaps are computed from unrounded ratios (80.23 − 65.88 = 14.4 points in H1 2026; 78.43 − 67.57 = 10.9 points in H1 2025). Source: NCUA 5300 Call Report Quarterly Data, cycle 6/30/2026, released 14 September 2026 (n = 4,299 credit unions).
Friction is the problem we solve
82.3% of U.S. credit unions — 3,540 institutions under $500M in assets — ran at efficiency ratios of 78.6%–80.2% in H1 2026, yet hold just 12.8% of industry assets. This index measures expense levels; it does not show which costs drive them. StratEdge gives document-heavy operations one control layer — intake, document tracking, follow-up, and AI assistance.
The market behind the metric
A $2.52T industry of document-heavy operations
Operating scale across all U.S. credit unions — every figure is an actual NCUA Call Report count.
4,299
Credit unions (2,649 federal · 1,565 state · 85 non-FI)
147.4M
Members served
$2.52T
Total assets
366,076
Employees (full-time equivalent)
22,837
Branch / service locations
3,820
Credit unions under $1B (core market)
Source: NCUA 5300 Call Report Quarterly Data, cycle 6/30/2026, released 14 September 2026 (n = 4,299 credit unions). · 82.3% of credit unions are under $500M yet hold just 12.8% of industry assets.
Methodology & data source
Computed from the NCUA 5300 Call Report Quarterly Data files, cycle 6/30/2026 (released 14 September 2026), covering all 4,299 reporting credit unions. Income-statement figures are year-to-date for H1 2026 (January–June). Ratios are dollar-weighted (pooled): the sum of numerators divided by the sum of denominators across credit unions — not an average of per-institution ratios — so large outliers cannot distort the result. All inputs are public; no confidential or member data is used.
The efficiency ratio is operating (non-interest) expense divided by total revenue (net interest income + non-interest income); the loan-loss provision is excluded. Operating-expense intensity is non-interest expense over period-end total assets, annualized (H1 × 2). Members per FTE uses full-time-equivalent staff (full-time + 0.5 × part-time). Asset bands (period-end assets) are <$50M, $50M–$500M, $500M–$1B, and $1B+. Year-over-year comparisons use H1 2025 year-to-date (cycle 6/30/2025); half-year and full-year figures should not be compared directly because of seasonality. Figures are reproducible from the public NCUA dataset at ncua.gov.
This ratio is not defined the same way as the Bank Index ratio (the FDIC subtracts intangible amortization), and the asset bands differ; do not compare credit union and bank ratios directly.
Version notes. 2026H1.1 (October 2026): refreshed from cycle 12/31/2025 (full-year 2025) to cycle 6/30/2026 (H1 2026 year to date); added H1 2025 comparison, annualized operating expense to assets, and a CSV download; corrected the sub-$500M efficiency range to match the table. Earlier edition: full-year 2025 (cycle 12/31/2025, n = 4,374).
Download the data (CSV) · Band-level aggregates only, derived from public NCUA data. Licensed CC BY 4.0; credit the NCUA as the data source.
How to cite
StratEdge Workflow Systems (2026). The StratEdge Credit Union Index: Operating Friction Benchmark, H1 2026. https://www.stratedgeworkflow.com/credit-union-index. Accessed [date].
Data questions: contact@stratedgeworkflow.com