March 14, 2014: Newly released star-ratings from BAUERFINANCIAL, Inc., the nation’s bank rating firm, Show continued progress by U.S. Banks and Credit Unions. Banks rated 5-Stars or 4- Stars (recommended by the firm) now represent 73% of the entire industry while 76.5% of credit unions are rated 5-Stars or 4-Stars. That’s even higher than the levels of 70.5% and 73.1% (respectively) at the end of 2007.
At the other end of the spectrum, the number of banks and Credit Unions rated 2-Stars or below (Troubled or Problematic) currently represent 7% of total banks and 3.3% of credit unions. On the surface, that’s considerably higher than the 2% that each claimed six years ago. However, if you look at the assets represented by those troubled or problematic institutions, less than 1% of each industry is affected. At their peak, assets in U.S. banks rated 2-Stars or below represented over 14.5% of the industry assets (4Q’08) and credit unions rated 2-Stars or below represented nearly 8% of total assets (4Q’09). At less than 0.9% now, that is a huge improvement.
All of the financial institutions rated by BAUERFINANCIAL are federally insured up to at least $250,000 per depositor. But if you are among the millions who have direct deposit or use automatic bill pay, any disruption (e.g., a bank failure) could wreak havoc. No need to worry when checking the rating of your bank or credit union is just a couple of clicks away. Simply visit www.bauerfinancial.com to find out yours today.