Vibrant Credit Union Offers Competitive Rate On 13-Month CD Special

Illinois-based Vibrant Credit Union (Vibrant) has upped the rate on its 13-month CD Special. Following a recent 50 bps increase, the 13-month CD Special now offers a competitive 5.50% APY. The minimum opening deposit is a low $5, with no stated balance cap.

Early Withdrawal Penalty

As stated in the Rates & Service Charges document, the extremely harsh Early Withdrawal Penalty (EWP) reads as follows:

We may impose a penalty if you withdraw any of the principal of the Certificate Account before the maturity date.

1) Amount of Penalty. The amount of the penalty is all of the dividends earned on the account.

2) How the Penalty Works. The penalty is calculated as a forfeiture of dividends earned. If earned dividends are insufficient or have previously been withdrawn, the penalty will be deducted from the principal balance.

There is no language on Vibrant Credit Union’s website that indicates that the bank reserves the right to deny an early withdrawal or early closure. In addition to the EWP, there is a $25 Early Account Closure fee if a CD is closed within 90 days of opening.

Availability

Headquartered in Moline, Illinois, Vibrant Credit Union’s field of membership (FOM) includes three ways to qualify for membership, including an easy membership requirement.

Residency: U.S. citizens who live in any of 22 northwest Illinois counties, 15 southeast Iowa counties, three west central Indiana counties, or three southwest Wisconsin counties are eligible to join.

Employment: Employees of more than 200 companies (listed only on the online application) also qualify for membership.

Other (Easy Membership): As stated on the online application, the third eligibility option reads:

I want to qualify a different way.

No problem! Complete the rest of the application and we will contact you!

According to CSR, if you don’t meet the residency or employment requirement, you can “qualify through a different way.” When asked to define a “different way,” CSR stated Vibrant CU would open a free insurance policy for those applying ($1k value) and through that transaction, qualifying applicants for membership.

Another option has been added for residents of Illinois.

I want to qualify using Illinois Consumer Council.

Account Opening

Joining Vibrant and/or opening a CD Special can be done online or at any of four Illinois branch locations in Danville, Geneseo, and Moline (2) or three Iowa branch locations in Bettendorf, Davenport, and Des Moines.

Establishing a membership with Vibrant starts with as little as $5 in a credit union savings account.

Funding and Other Details

The following information is from the Rates and Service Charges document and a conversation with CSR.

• Funding – ACH, wire, or internal transfer.
• CO-OP Shared Branch Participant – No.
• Ownership – Individual or joint.
• Dividends – Compounded/credited quarterly; dividends can be withdrawn penalty-free.
• Maturing Funds – Wire ($20 fee), cashier’s check to address on file, or internal transfer to a Vibrant checking or savings account.
• Grace Period – 7 calendar days before automatic renewal as a 12-month CD.
• Beneficiaries – Unlimited with equal shares; Social Security numbers required for all beneficiaries.
• Credit check – Hard pull.

Credit Union Overview

Vibrant Credit Union has an overall health grade of "B" at DepositAccounts.com, with a Texas Ratio of 3.51% (excellent) based on September 30, 2023 data. In the past year, Vibrant CU’s total non-brokered deposits decreased by -$25.87 million, a below average annual growth rate of -3.82%. Please refer to our financial overview of Vibrant Credit Union (NCUA Charter # 61093) for more details.

Chartered in 1935 for the benefit of the John Deere Harvester Works Plant employees, the original Deere Harvester Credit Union opened its doors with a modest $40 in assets. In the mid-90s, the field of membership was changed to include non-employees, as well as John Deere employees.

In 2005, John Deere requested the credit union to rebrand and remove any name/affiliation with the John Deere brand. At that time we changed from Deere Harvester Credit Union to DHCU Community Credit Union (an acronym without a meaning).

Following the DHCU rebrand, there was still confusion about non-employees being eligible for membership, so the name was changed to Vibrant Credit Union in late 2015.

Between February 2017 and April 2018, Vibrant acquired one Iowa (IntegrUS Credit Union) and four Illinois credit unions (Salt Creek Credit Union, First Illinois Credit Union, Electris Energy, Inc. Employees Credit Union, and Dekalb County Credit Union). Vibrant Credit Union is currently the twelfth largest credit union headquartered in Illinois, with nearly 45,000 members and assets in excess of $1 billion.

How the 13-Month CD Special 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, two banks and two credit unions have higher rates than currently offered on the Vibrant Credit Union 13-month CD Special. The following table compares the 13-Month CD Special to the four highest-rate similar length-of-term CDs from other banks/credit unions with nationwide market areas.

The above information and rates are accurate as of 2/5/2024.

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