Source page: McKinsey & Company
Commentary
Credit unions’ youth dilemma
Financial services | Gen Z | Banking
July 10, 2024 – Credit unions are losing market share with younger generations, with banks serving as the primary financial institution for the majority of millennials and Gen Zers. Senior partner Pradip Patiath and colleagues find that baby boomers accounted for the largest share of credit unions’ members last year, at 39 percent, an increase from 28 percent in 2015. As more baby boomers retire and reduce their borrowing needs, credit unions’ performance could be at risk in the coming years if they don’t increase their relevance to millennials and Gen Zers.
To read the article, see “Six imperatives for credit unions to secure their future,” June 17, 2024.
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Visual form
Grouped bar chart by generation and institution type.
Layout / body structure
The visual lays out generations from oldest on the left to youngest on the right, and within each generation it places paired bars for credit unions and banks above a colored cohort timeline running along the bottom.
What is being compared
It compares the share of banked households whose primary financial institution is a credit union versus a bank across generational cohorts in 2023.
Measurement system
The measure is percent of respondents, printed inside or above the bars, with the cohorts segmented by generation from Silent generation through Gen Z.
Visible structure inside the graphic
Each cohort has two adjacent bars, one for credit unions and one for banks, and the bars are color-coded from darker to lighter blue as the generations move younger, while callout text highlights the different strength with baby boomers and younger consumers.
Main takeaway from the visual
The chart shows that credit unions skew older while banks do better with younger households, because credit unions lead only in the baby-boomer cohort and trail banks in Gen X, Millennials, and Gen Z.
Key standout values or extremes
Baby boomers are 39 percent for credit unions versus 29 percent for banks, Gen X is 25 versus 24, Millennials flips to 21 for credit unions versus 29 for banks, and Gen Z is 10 for credit unions versus 12 for banks; both institutions sit at 5 in the Silent generation.
Controls / sequence, when applicable
This is a static chart image with no in-chart controls to operate.
Companion media, when applicable
There is no separate companion audio or video; the chart image is the full visual on this page.