Advancial's Jumbo CDs and IRA CDs Become Rate Leaders

It’s been almost a year since I last wrote about Advancial. This week’s across-the-board rate increases have put the Texas-based credit union's Jumbo Certificates in the forefront of the rates race. All of Advancial’s Certificates have tiered APYs, based on minimum opening deposits: Certificates ($1k min), Junior Jumbo Certificates ($25k min), and Jumbo Certificates ($50k min). The APYs are tiered in increments of 10 bps.

Like last year, Advancial’s shorter-term Certificates have the more competitive APYs, even as rates continue to climb, with between 93 and 115 bps added in the last year. More telling, is the flattening yield curve: in December 2018, there was a difference of 66 bps between the 1-year and 5-year APYs; currently there’s a difference of 48 bps.

Advancial’s Certificates are also offered as IRAs (Traditional, Roth, CESA), earning the same tiered APYs with the same funding requirements.

In a Live Chat, CSR stated,

The early withdrawal penalty for our One-Year, 18-Month, Two-Year, and
Three-Year Certificates is equal to 180 days dividends. For a Four-Year and
Five Year Certificate, the early withdrawal penalty is equal for 365 dividends.

Many thanks to DA reader, alan1, for his continued Forum posts about Advancial’s CDs.

Availability

Headquartered in Dallas, Texas, Advancial’s field of membership (FOM) includes a way for almost any U.S. citizen or resident alien able to join.

Easy Membership: Joining Connex ($5 membership fee) qualifies for membership in Advancial. According to Connex’s website, membership with Connex provides “access to a professional, online interactive network of work associates and friends, company information and jobs, and other opportunities.”

Residency - Individuals who live, work, worship, or attend school in the Louisiana parishes of Acadia, Avoyelles, Evangeline, Iberia, Lafayette, St. Landry, St. Martin, and Vermillion are eligible to join.

Employment - Employees of hundreds SEGs also qualify for membership. Unfortunately, Advancial does not list any of the SEGs on their website. According to the Membership Eligibility page,

To learn if your company or association is an Advancial Select Employer Group,
please contact your local branch or our Member Service Center at 800.322.2709.

There’s not much information about the SEGs on Advancial’s website, but its branch locations “are in energy producing areas, having started as ARCO’s credit union catering to the oil and gas industry.” CSR stated that many of the SEGs are oil and gas industry companies.

Good news – Advancial has added an online New Member Application, but joining Connex requires a paper application. In a Live Chat, CSR stated,

This Select Association Group [Connex] is not available in our online application portal, but we can send the appropriate membership documentation to you via our secure email service if you wish.

The “appropriate membership documentation” includes a PDF of both Advancial’s membership application and the Connex application. A New Account Funding Authorization is also included, listing the following options for initial funding:

• Credit or Debit Card
• Funds Transfer from Another Advancial Account
• Check
• Cash

The application is also available as a download and can be returned by mail, fax, or email to the Member Service Center in Dallas. Advancial also has 13 branches located in Alaska (2), Louisiana (2), Oklahoma (1), and Texas (8).

Advancial also participates in Shared Branching through the CO-OP network, giving members access to more than 5,000 branches and nearly 30,000 surcharge-free ATMs nationwide.

Credit Union Overview

Advancial has an overall health grade of "B+" at DepositAccounts.com, with a Texas Ratio of 6.10% (excellent) based on June 30, 2018 data. In the past year, Advancial has increased its total non-brokered deposits by $141.16 million, an excellent annual growth rate of 11.83%. Please refer to our financial overview of Advancial (NCUA Charter # 2285) for more details.

Chartered in 1937, as the Atlantic Federal Credit Union, Advancial is the 12^th largest credit union based in Texas, with more than 87,100 members and assets in excess of $1.6 billion. The original charter was issued by the Farm Credit Administration, an independent agency of the Executive Branch that was created in 1933. (If you’re wondering why a Texas-based credit union would have “Atlantic” in its name, the original FOM included employees of the Atlantic Richland Company, better known as ARCO.) In 2001, the Credit Union rebranded as Advancial to better reflect its diverse membership.

How the Jumbo Certificates Compare

When compared to the similar length-of-term CDs tracked by DepositAccounts.com that are available nationwide and have a minimum deposit of $50k or less, all of Advancial's Jumbo Certificate APYs currently rank either first or second.

The above rates are accurate as of 11/3/2018.

To look for the best CD rates, both nationwide and state specific, please refer to our CD Rates Table page.