Your money is safe with us.
Silicon Valley Bank (SVB) in California and Signature Bank in New York were recently closed by federal regulators. Understandably, this may raise questions or concerns for our members.
Here are some FAQs to answer specific questions you may have. If you have any additional concerns, please do not hesitate to contact us at (800) 242-9790 or visit your local branch.
How will the news of the recent bank closures impact me and my deposits at LMCU?
LMCU members will not be impacted. Your deposits are safe and your money will be here waiting for you whenever you need it.
Is my money safe at LMCU?
All deposits up to $250,000 per account holder are federally insured through the NCUA. According to mycreditunion.gov, not one penny of insured savings has ever been lost by a member of a federally insured credit union.
Other account types, such as trusts or retirement accounts, qualify for additional coverage.
How is LMCU different than the banks who closed last week?
At an institutional level, an overwhelming majority of deposits held with LMCU are fully insured with the NCUA. In contrast, approximately 90 percent of SVB's deposits were not insured.
At LMCU, our deposit base is comprised of members' personal savings, checking, money markets and CD deposits. In contrast, SVB deposits were primarily from large companies and venture capital funds, and Signature Bank was heavily tied to volatile cryptocurrencies.
LMCU is a financially stable, diversified institution and structured for steady growth. LMCU has top ratings for financial security and stability from Bauer Financial and Weiss Ratings.
LMCU works closely with financial regulators and third-party advisors, and we also regularly run stress tests to help ensure we are prepared and can weather even extreme market conditions.
LMCU does not treat our investments as a source of liquidity. Instead, we use investments as collateral with the Federal Reserve to allow us to borrow through them. As such, we would not sell our investments to raise cash.
LMCU's investment portfolio only comprises approximately six percent of its total assets. We are conservatively invested and diversified, whereas SVB's investment portfolio comprised approximately 70 percent of its assets. These investments were too concentrated and not well planned to meet the institution's needs.
LMCU had a record year for net income in 2022 and managed to increase its capital ratio, while many other financial institutions struggled under market conditions and ended 2022 with lower capital ratios.
LMCU has considerable access to liquidity through our existing borrowing facilities with the Federal Home Loan Bank and the Federal Reserve.
Should I be taking out cash as a precautionary measure?
Your money will be here when you need it at LMCU — All deposits up to $250,000 per account are federally insured through the NCUA. Additionally, LMCU is regularly examined by state and federal regulators for financial soundness. You don't need to be concerned about losing your deposits — even in the cases of the recent bank closures, regulators acted to ensure none of their customers actually lost money.
Besides my savings or checking accounts, should I be doing anything differently with my money market or 401(k) accounts? How do I better protect myself and my assets?
LMCU is here to answer any questions you may have about your accounts with us. Regarding investments you may have outside of LMCU, seeking professional legal or wealth management advice is the best course of action.
What if I have additional questions?
Please contact us at [email protected] or (800) 242-9790 for any additional questions not addressed here.