RALEIGH, N.C.–Coastal Credit Union has paid out more than $3.7 million in special dividends to eligible members through its Loyalty Bonus program.
Coastal said the payout was shared among more than 69,000 members, making it the largest bonus dividend in terms of both dollars paid and number of recipients, CCU said.
The total Loyalty Bonus dividend was based on Coastal’s overall performance in 2019, with individual payouts then calculated based on each member’s aggregate relationship (year-end loan balances plus average deposits), as well as their length of membership. Individual members received anywhere from $5 up to $300.
“Loyalty Bonus Day has become somewhat of a company celebration here,” said Chuck Purvis, Coastal’s president and CEO, in a statement. “It’s so much more than a monetary payout to our members. It’s a day where we celebrate the very reason we’re able to return that money to them. As a member-owned cooperative, we’re not obligated to extract huge profits from consumers and pay them out to investors. Instead, the money we earn belongs to the members who use our products and services, and when we have a good year, we can give some of it back to them.”
More Than $20 Million Returned
Coastal noted over the past nine years it has returned $21.1 million to members as special dividends. The credit union said it also looks at the overall positive impact it has made by saving money for members on their everyday financial needs.
“Loyalty Bonus is just part of how Coastal returns value to our members; our purpose is to do what’s financially right for them, at every interaction” added Joe Mecca, VP of communication. “Each year, we try to quantify that value, and have identified more than $35 million in member savings during 2019, or $130 per member. We calculate the difference between our loan rates, deposit dividends and fees, compared to the banks in our market, and add in the value of other incentives and programs that we provided as membership benefits throughout the year.”