Chairman and
President's Report

To process 7.7 million loan applications in a year, you must have effective people, processes, and technology. We’re proud to say CU Direct accomplished this and more in 2021. The company continued to deliver on the promise to create the ultimate origination experience for members, credit unions, and auto dealerships—and did it while setting new records across our many business lines.

Record-breaking performance
In 2021, our CUDL network of credit unions retained the #1 spot for auto lenders in the U.S. for the fourth year in a row. This accomplishment represented $46.9 billion in Indirect Loan Funding, which contributed to $57 billion in Total Loan Funding—a new company record. It is also an optimistic sign that credit union lending has not only returned to pre-pandemic levels but surpassed them.

We saw our partnerships expand to 1,157 credit unions representing 64 million members. Our dealer coverage also increased to include 15,700 dealerships on the CUDL network. Origence Lending Services generated $4.9 million in net income (fueled by our expansion of new RV lending connections and leasing programs), while Vero generated $2.4 million—both all-time highs. By all measures, CU Direct performed solidly across many metrics in 2021.

The power of partnership
The key to helping credit unions make more loans in a digital age comes down to providing multiple access points to valuable integrations, meaningful partnerships, and innovations otherwise not easily attainable. These value-added services create additional loan opportunities and operational efficiencies for our credit union partners, while providing additional revenue for CU Direct. In 2021 we strengthened relationships with current strategic partners such as Equifax and Transunion. We also secured agreements with new partners, including LoanStar, eDOC, Black Book, and CARFAX, as well as credit union-friendly fintechs such as CuneXus and WithClutch. Our preferred partnerships with refinance brokers continued to grow in 2021, with the addition of AutoPay, Caribou, Gravity Lending, Rate Genius, and Yield Solutions Group.