Central 1 Credit Union Posts 2014 Profit of $53.6 Million

VANCOUVER, BRITISH COLUMBIA--(Marketwired - March 3, 2015) - Central 1 Credit Union (Central 1) announced today it posted a profit of $53.6 million for the year ended December 31, 2014, down $14.9 million or 21.7 per cent from 2013.

"Central 1 continues to perform well in a challenging slow growth, low interest rate environment and I believe our organization is well positioned for the future," said Don Wright, President and CEO of Central 1. "Based on our strong performance, we have returned $22.5 million in dividends to our member credit unions and continue to improve the services we provide to them."

Key results for 2014, compared to 2013:

• Total assets at year-end were $13.1 billion, an increase of $0.9 billion or 7.4 per cent from 2013.
  
  
• Return on average equity was 5.9 per cent, compared to 8.2 per cent in 2013. This reflects lower earnings in 2014 and a higher capital base.
  
  
• Other income increased 3.3 per cent to $119.7 million, reflecting higher levels of income across most business lines.
  
  
• Operating expenses increased 2.1 per cent from the previous year to $129.5 million.
  
  
• Dividends of $22.5 million were declared to member shareholders in 2014, compared to $14.0 million in 2013.
  

Central 1 has sufficient capital to meet regulatory requirements with a provincial regulatory capital base of $946.8 million (after deductions) and a ratio of regulatory capital to risk-weighted assets of 60.6 per cent. At the end of 2014, Central 1's borrowing multiple for federal capital adequacy purposes was 12.4:1.

B.C. and Ontario credit union systems

Assets of the B.C. system totalled $61.5 billion at the end of 2014, up $2.5 billion or 4.3 per cent from a year earlier.

System deposits totalled $54.4 billion at the end of 2014, up 4.8 per cent from 2013. Commercial mortgages grew 6.3 per cent to $13.2 billion, while residential mortgages were up 1.7 per cent to $34.7 billion.

Asset growth for the Ontario system was strong, with assets of Central 1's Ontario member credit unions totalling $36.2 billion at year-end, up 9.5 per cent year-over-year. The addition of Ontario Civil Service Credit Union to Central 1's Ontario membership added $150 million to aggregate year-end assets, accounting for 0.5 per cent of asset growth.

System deposits totalled $30 billion at the end of 2014, up 7.3 per cent from 2013. Commercial mortgages grew 11.7 per cent to $8.9 billion, while residential mortgages were up 10.0 per cent to $16.4 billion.

Central 1's Financial Review 2014 has been filed with SEDAR and is posted on www.sedar.com and on www.central1.com.

About Central 1

With offices in Vancouver, Mississauga and Toronto, Central 1 holds approximately $13 billion in on balance sheet assets. We provide wholesale financial products, trust services, investment banking services, payment processing solutions and direct banking services to more than 300 credit unions and institutional clients from coast to coast.

In addition, Central 1 is the primary liquidity manager, payments provider and trade association for our 43 member credit unions in B.C. and 84 Ontario member credit unions. Our members represent a consumer-oriented, full-service retail financial system that collectively serves 3.2 million members and holds more than $97 billion in assets. For more information, visit www.central1.com.