No one disputes that a faltering economy has been a major contributor to thousands of CU balance sheets showing flat income or even losing money, but some observers also see the problem as being one of NCUA's own making-at least in part.

DuPont Community CU used a sweepstakes to take auto lending from flat to 10% growth.

evolve FCU here is creating a group of young adult "brand ambassadors" to help increase awareness of the credit union in the community.

Looking to better guard against fraud at your credit union? Then learn from other CUs' experiences. Following is a compilation of fraud at credit unions in recent months.

Whether it's illegally accessing member accounts, approving fraudulent loans and diverting the proceeds, or just plain stealing cash, internal fraud continues to be an issue for credit unions; in fact, the average claim has increased fourfold in recent years.

Despite the sophistication of fast-growing mobile banking services, the greatest fraud-fighting tool in this emerging area is basic consumer education.

Experts interviewed about strategies for preventing internal fraud recommended a number of steps-some more commonly used than others-to augment fraud protection procedures at credit unions.

Lost among all the talk of growth strategies credit unions are or should be implementing is the fact CUs in some areas of the country are simply striving to eke out a small net income.

2013 will most likely be a "mixed year" for $7.9-billion The Golden 1 Credit Union, but it will be an improvement from 2012.

The pinch of the recession was barely felt at $5.7-billion San Diego County Credit Union, which has followed a small loss in 2008 with four straight years of solid income-with more expected in 2013.

For $669-million One Nevada Credit Union, the omnipresent watchful eye of "Big Brother" is a good thing.

An open core system that allows credit unions to easily add and share new functionality is not only key to individual CU growth this year, but to the entire credit union community as well, asserts Open Solutions.

For $2.1-billion Redwood Credit Union the recession did not bring the kinds of losses than plagued many CUs, but it did knock a hole in its normally robust lending portfolio.

Credit unions of all assets and locations share one thing in common: it's imperative that they grow. That's why Growth will be the only item on the agenda at Credit Union Journal's Grow Show 2013, which is now set for May 30-31 in Orlando.

One person believes that home equity lending could be a major boon for credit union growth in the new year.

The sentiments behind Bank Transfer Day is still out there, and $746-million Xceed Financial CU intends to tap it.

CU ONE Teams Up With AAA

When it comes to fighting fraud in the mobile space, CUs should direct much of their attention to mobile payments.

The bigger the credit union or bank, the larger the overdraft price.

Mission Federal Credit Union has launched "Mission Fed Money Match," a program that matches the dollar amount of winning members' loan payments, debit or credit card purchases, or direct deposits, up to a certain amount per transaction type.