Barksdale Federal Credit Union CD Rates Leap To Rate Leading Levels

It’s been 14 months since I last wrote about Barksdale Federal Credit Union (BFCU) Certificates. At that time, all of BFCU Certificates were near-rate or rate leaders when compared to nationally available CDs. While almost every bank and credit union has been actively raising rates in the past few months, BFCU rates were just sitting on the bench. Following significant across-the-board rate increases over the weekend, BFCU Certificates are back in the game.

With the largest rate increases (112-128 bps), the 6-month (2.78% APY), 12-month (2.99% APY), and 24-month (3.04% APY) Certificates offer the most competitive rates. Any of the Certificates can be opened with a $1k minimum deposit, with no stated balance cap.

The 12- and 24-month Certificates are also offered as IRA Certificates (Traditional, Roth, CESA), earning the same APYs with the same deposit requirements.

As stated in the Truth-in-Savings disclosure, the Early Withdrawal Penalty reads as follows:

Terms of 12 months or less – 90 days’ dividends

Terms of longer than 12 months – 180 days’ dividends

Funds must be on deposit in a BFCU Share Savings account in order for new members to fund a Certificate. Following the field of membership expansion, a long-time DA reader opened a BFCU Certificate and shared his experience with me.

Yes, I did the online [application]. They do not do funding immediately .... took about 5-10 days for my initial share to fund, and they will not allow initial CDs to be funded. You have to get funds into the [savings] share first.

BFCU participates in the CO-OP Shared Branch network, so transferring funds into a Share Savings account should be relatively simple.

Maturing funds will be distributed by check to the address on file, by wire, or transferred into a BFCU Share Savings account. There is a ten day grace period before a BFCU Certificate automatically renews.

Plus Point Certificates

Barksdale Federal’s Plus Point Certificates/IRA Certificates no longer earn APYs 20 bps higher than the standard Certificates/IRA Certificates; the Plus Point rates now mirror that of the regular Certificates. The Plus Point Certificates are Barksdale Federal’s version of a CD ladder: five Certificates (one for each term) must be opened at the same time with a $1k minimum deposit.

With a Plus Point Certificate you stagger your money into each available term. Once each certificate matures, your money plus the interest earned is available to you again for spending or additional investing options.

Availability

Headquartered in Bossier City, Louisiana, Barksdale Federal Credit Union significantly expanded its field of membership (FOM) about two years ago. Like the FOMs of Navy Fed and Service Credit Union, BFCU’s FOM now includes current and former members of the US military (and their immediate family members) no matter where they live.

As stated on the Membership Eligibility page, US citizens/resident aliens are eligible to join BFCU if they,

Live, work, worship, attend school or own a business in Bossier, Caddo, Webster, Rapides, Allen or Grant Parish, Louisiana

Active military or civilian employees at Barksdale Air Force Base

Active military or civilian employees at Fort Polk Army Post

Honorably discharged or retired veterans who served in any of the Armed Services of the United States

An employee (full or part-time) at one of our 1000+ Select Employee Groups

A member of the immediate family or household of a current Barksdale Federal member or any person eligible for membership

Joining BFCU and/or opening a Certificate can be done online, with an “Open An Account” button at the top right of every page of the BFCU website.

Certificates can also be opened at any of the 22 Louisiana branches or the two Texas branches, both of which are in Longview.

Our lobbies are open with limited occupancy. If you would like to make a lobby appointment for a loan or new account opening, please fill out the lobby appointment form.

Opening a Prime Savings account with a minimum $10 deposit ($5 one-time membership fee and $5 savings deposit) establishes a Barksdale Federal membership.

BFCU participates in the CO-OP Shared Branch network, but not the ATM network.

Credit Union Overview

Barksdale Federal Credit Union has an overall health grade of "A" at DepositAccounts.com, with a Texas Ratio of 2.56% (excellent) based on March 31, 2022 data. In the past year, Barksdale Federal has increased its total non-brokered deposits by $112.42 million, resulting in an excellent annual growth rate of 6.38%. Please refer to our financial overview of Barksdale Federal Credit Union (NCUA Charter # 9589) for more details.

Founded in 1954, Barksdale Federal Credit Union’s original FOM was exclusive to the military and civilian personnel at Barksdale Air Force Base in Bossier City, Louisiana. As the largest credit union in Louisiana and the 214^th largest credit union in the country, BFCU currently has more than 157,000 members and assets in excess of $2 billion.

How the Certificates Compares

When compared to similar length-of-term CDs tracked by DepositAccounts.com which are available nationally and have minimum deposit requirements of $10k or less, no banks or credit unions have higher rates than currently offered on the Barksdale Federal Credit Union 6-month, 12-month, or 18-month Certificates. The following table compares the three Barksdale FCU Certificates to the two highest-rate CDs from other credit unions and the two highest-rate CDs from banks.

The above information and rates are accurate as of 7/25/2022.

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