Pelican State Credit Union 60-Month CD Has Near Market-Leading Rate

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Deal Summary: 60-month CD, 4.70% APY, $500 minimum deposit.

Availability: Nationwide Easy Membership Requirement

Louisiana-based Pelican State Credit Union (Pelican State) boosted the rate on its 60-month CD recently. Following a substantial increase of 88 bps, the 60-month CD offers a competitive 4.70% APY, which places the 60-month CD near the top of the 5-year CD in yesterday’s CD Deal Summary.

The minimum opening deposit is $500, with no stated balance cap. While Jumbo CDs ($10k minimum deposit) are listed separately on the Pelican State website, the APY for the 60-month Jumbo CD is the same 4.70% APY.

The 60-month CD/Jumbo CD are available as IRA CD/Jumbo IRA CD (Traditional, Roth, CESA), with the same deposit requirements, but with a significantly lower rate of 3.82% APY.

24-Month CD

The 24-Month CD has been the "golden child" of the Pelican State CD product line, offering 5.27% APY for more than eight months. As other 2-year nationally available CD rates have dropped in the recent past few months, the 5.27% APY has become more competitive.

A Little Rate History

For a few days last August, the 24-month rate was 5.90% APY – 60 bps higher than any other nationally available 2-year CD at that time. A fortuitous Forum post by DA reader, SouthernGirl, led to a blog post about the 24-month CD, with many DA readers taking advantage of this exceptional rate. That blog post generated nearly 60 comments, many of which were informational and helpful, particularly concerning funding. For example,

vlad – 1. The funds can be ACH-pushed from your external bank as soon as you get your Pelican account number, without any further "Pelican instructions".

2. There is an option to transfer a CD balance upon the maturity to Pelican checking or savings accounts from where the funds can be ACH-pulled back into external banks.

Robb – The rep I spoke to said you can open the CD when applying for membership with the 1k max ACH limit and then add onto the CD once approved/open. I sent them an email in as well to back up my intention. The rep also stated to expect a couple of days before newly submitted applications would be approved as they are quite busy.

Early Withdrawal Penalty

As stated in the FAQs on the Savings and Investment page, the substantial Early Withdrawal Penalties read as follows:

For all accounts, the amount of early withdrawal penalty is based on the term of your account. The penalty schedule is as follows:

    1 year or less, 180 days' dividends
    13 to 36 months, 270 days' dividends
    37 months or longer, 365 days' dividends

If the account has not yet earned enough dividends or if the dividends have already been paid, the penalty will be deducted from the principal.

Availability

Headquartered in Baton Rouge, Pelican State Credit Union expanded its field of membership (FOM) nearly two years ago, with the previous 4-state limited-area easy membership requirement (EMR) becoming a nationwide EMR.

Easy Membership: Any U.S. citizen/resident aliens can qualify for membership by joining one of three partner associations: ARC of Baton Rouge ($5 fee), Parents Association of Northwest Supports & Services ($5 fee), or Pinecrest Parents Association ($20 fee).

Residency: Individuals who live in the Louisiana parishes of Rapides, St. Landry, or St. Tammany are eligible to join.

Employment: Employees and retirees of many SEGs, including Ochsner Health, are eligible for membership.

Relationship: Immediate family members of current Pelican members or anyone who is membership eligible are also welcome to apply.

Account Opening

Joining Pelican State and/or opening a CD can be done online, or at any of 17 full-service Louisiana branches located in Alexandria, Baton Rouge, Covington, Denham Springs, Hammond, Houma, Jackson, Lafayette, Lake Charles, Monroe, New Orleans, Opelousas, Pineville, Prairieville, Slidell, Sulphur, and Zachary.

A Primary Shares account establishes full membership in Pelican State Credit Union.

$10 minimum opening deposit ($5 membership fee + $5 minimum account balance)

Pelican State participates in the CO-OP Shared Branch network.

For your convenience, there are over 160 CO-OP shared branches in Louisiana and over 5,500 nationwide. Louisiana is where our heart is, but Pelican State CU is wherever you are!

Funding and Other Particulars

The following information is from a conversation with CSR.

  • Funding – ACH*, wire ($10 fee), or internal transfer.
  • Ownership – Individual, joint, or trust.
  • CO-OP Shared Branch Participant – Yes.
  • Maturing Funds – Cashier’s check to the address on file or internal transfer into a Primary Shares account.
  • Dividends – Compounded/credited monthly and can be withdrawn throughout during the term without penalty.
  • Grace Period – 10 calendar days before automatic renewal.
  • Beneficiaries – Unlimited with equal shares; Social Security numbers required.
  • Credit Check – Soft pull when joining.

*DA reader, vlad, posted this warning:

Avoid Pelican [initiated] ACH transfers: very slow, low limit, one-time ACH fee $15.00 by phone/branch or $5.00 online; rather push/pull funds via free & fast external bank ACHs!

ACHs pushed from external banks are available immediately upon arrival and can be used for immediate opening Pelican CD online or by phone. To secure the APY use the same-day ACHs offered by good banks.

Credit Union Overview

Pelican State Credit Union has an overall health grade of "B+" at DepositAccounts.com, with a Texas Ratio of 13.22% (above average) based on September 30, 2023 data. In the past year, Pelican has increased its total non-brokered deposits by $45.13 million, an excellent annual growth rate of 8.26%. Please refer to our financial overview of Pelican State Credit Union (NCUA Charter # 62710) for more details.

Founded in 1956 as the Department of Hospitals Credit Union, Pelican’s original FOM was comprised of employees of Louisiana charity hospitals, mental health centers, and state office personnel. Pelican State Credit Union name was adopted in 1988 to better reflect the expanding FOM, which included mergers with Lake Charles TELCO Credit Union, Pinekraft Federal Credit Union, Kaiser Federal Credit Union, Chalmette Refinery Credit Union, and Louisiana Farm Bureau Credit Union. Pelican State Credit Union is currently the eighth largest credit union headquartered in Louisiana, with more than 75,000 members and assets in excess of $677 million.

How the 60-Month CD Compares

When compared to similar length-of-term CDs tracked by DepositAccounts.com that are available nationwide and have minimum deposit requirements of $10k or less, only one credit union has a higher rate than currently offered on the Pelican State Credit Union 60-Month CD. The following table compares the 60-Month CD to the four highest-rate similar length-of-term CDs from other banks/credit unions within the market area.

How the 24-Month CD Compares

When compared to similar length-of-term CDs tracked by DepositAccounts.com that are available nationwide and have minimum deposit requirements of $10k or less, no banks or credit unions have higher rates than currently offered on the Pelican State Credit Union 24-Month CD. The following table compares the 24-Month CD to the four highest-rate similar length-of-term CDs from other banks/credit unions.

The above information and rates are accurate as of 3/14/2024.

To search for the best CD rates, both nationwide and state-specific, please refer to our CD rates table page.

Related Pages: New Orleans CD rates, Monroe CD rates, Lafayette CD rates, Lake Charles CD rates, Alexandria CD rates, Baton Rouge CD rates, 1-year CD rates, 5-year CD rates, IRA CD rates, nationwide deals



Pelican State Credit Union 24-Month CD Still Has Market-Leading Rate
Deal Summary: 24-month CD, 5.27% APY, $500 minimum deposit.

Availability: Nationwide Easy Membership Requirement

Louisiana-based Pelican State Credit Union (Pelican State) has been offering 5.27% APY on its 24-month CD since mid-August 2023. As other 2-year nationally available CD rates have dropped in the past few months, that 5.27% APY has become more competitive. The minimum opening deposit is $500, with no stated balance cap. While Jumbo CDs ($10k minimum deposit) are listed separately on the Pelican State website, the APY for the 24-month...

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Pelican State Credit Union Has Rate-Leading 12-Month and 24-Month CDs
UPDATE 8/16/2023: Rates dropped this afternoon - 12-month CD (5.17% APY) and 24-month CD (5.27% APY), $500 minimum deposit.

Deal Summary: 12-month CD (5.64% 5.17%APY) and 24-month CD (5.90% 5.27% APY), $500 minimum deposit.

Availability: Easy Membership Requirement (Nationwide)

As DA reader, SouthernGirl, noted in a recent Forum post, Louisiana-based Pelican State Credit Union (Pelican State) has again substantially boosted the rates on its 12-month CD (5.64% APY – up by 47 bps) and 24-month CD (5.90% APY – up by 63 bps)....

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Pelican State Credit Union Offers Rate-Leading 24-Month CD Nationwide
Deal Summary: 24-month CD, 5.27% APY, $500 minimum deposit.

Availability: Nationwide easy membership requirement

Louisiana-based Pelican State Credit Union (Pelican State) recently boosted its 24-month CD APY to a rate-leading level. Following an increase of 41 bps, the 24-month CD currently earns 5.27% APY. (While several of the Pelican State CDs saw rate increases this month, the 24-month CD had the largest increase and is the most competitive in the CD product line.) The minimum opening deposit is $500, with no stated balance cap. While Jumbo...

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Pelican State Credit Union Competitive CDs Now Available Nationwide
Deal Summary: 60-month Share Certificate, 4.97% APY, $500 minimum deposit.

Availability: Nationwide easy membership requirement

Pelican State Credit Union (Pelican State) ended the week by adding 136 bps to its 60-month Share Certificate, resulting in a very competitive 4.97% APY. While all of the Pelican State Share Certificate rates are definitely good, the longer-terms have the better rates, with the 60-month being the most competitive. The minimum opening deposit is $500, with no stated balance cap. While Jumbo Share Certificates (minimum $10k deposit) are listed separately on...

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Pelican State Credit Union 12-Month CD Rate Jumps Upward
Deal Summary: 12-month Share Certificate, 3.09% APY, $500 minimum deposit.

Availability: Easy membership requirement for residents of Louisiana, Arkansas, Mississippi, and Texas; Louisiana parishes of Rapides, St. Landry or St Tammany; employees/retirees of many SEGs.

Pelican State Credit Union (Pelican State) ended the week by adding 20 bps to its 12-month Share Certificate, resulting in a competitive 3.09% APY. While all of the Pelican State Share Certificate rates are definitely good, the 12-month offers the most competitive APY. The minimum opening deposit is $500, with no stated balance...

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