CU Direct – the auto lending affiliate for more than 1,000 credit unions – and its partner CUs have surpassed Ally Bank to become the nation's second largest auto financing source, the company said today. It has held the No. 3 spot for the last two years.
CU Direct said in a release that auto lending now makes up one third of credit unions' total loan portfolio, and has the fastest rate of growth among all credit union portfolio segments, including first-time mortgages. Credit unions as a whole continue to be a major force in the auto lending space, holding 22% of market share, according to AutoCount.
CU Direct also said credit union lenders on the CUDL Platform are experiencing the highest loan origination growth rate (15.4%) of any auto lender among the top nine lenders in the nation, according to data from AutoCount and CU Direct.
"Our goal has always been to help our partner credit unions and auto dealers create efficiencies and grow their overall market share," Tony Boutelle, president and CEO of CU Direct, said in a statement. "We are proud to provide solutions that achieve these objectives for our credit unions…CU Direct remains dedicated to developing and improving technology solutions that drive our credit unions' lending business and enable auto dealers to grow their bottom lines and cultivate customers for life."
The number one auto lender remains Well Fargo Dealer Services, CU Direct noted.
