About America First Credit Union

America First Credit Union (AFCU) is a federally chartered, member-owned cooperative headquartered in Riverdale, Utah, founded in 1939 to serve 59 civilian employees of the Hill Field military base. Eight decades later, AFCU serves more than 1.5 million members across Utah, Nevada, Arizona, Idaho, New Mexico, California, and Oregon — holding $23.3 billion in assets, operating 116 branches, and employing roughly 3,150 staff. It is the 6th largest credit union in the United States and the largest in Utah.

The 1939 founding and Hill Field origins

AFCU was chartered on March 23, 1939 by 59 civilian employees of Hill Field in northern Utah — the military airfield that later became Hill Air Force Base. The original purpose was straightforward: civilian workers at Hill Field wanted a cooperative source of small-dollar credit on fair terms, free of the predatory interest rates common in early-20th-century consumer lending. Each of the 59 founders contributed $5 to capitalize the institution. The first year's lending book was tiny by today's standards, but the cooperative model proved durable.

The credit union's connection to the federal workforce remained central for decades. As Hill Field expanded and was renamed Hill Air Force Base in 1948, AFCU's field of membership grew along with it — first to additional military personnel and dependents, then to other federal employees in the region, then to the broader Utah workforce, and finally to community-based eligibility covering qualifying counties across seven states.

Cooperative governance — member-owned, not investor-owned

AFCU is a federally chartered credit union under the Federal Credit Union Act of 1934, supervised and insured by the National Credit Union Administration (NCUA). Unlike a bank, the cooperative has no outside shareholders. Every member who opens a primary share account becomes a partial owner of the institution, with one vote in board elections regardless of account balance.

Day-to-day operations are run by a professional management team, but strategic direction sits with a volunteer board of directors elected by the membership. Surplus earnings — what a bank would call profit — are returned to members in the form of lower loan rates, higher deposit yields, reduced fees, and reinvestment in branch and digital infrastructure. This cooperative structure is the underlying reason credit unions on average charge less for consumer loans and pay more on deposits than comparable banks of the same asset size.

1. 1939 — FoundingChartered March 23 by 59 Hill Field civilian employees with $5 contributions each. First field of membership: Hill Field civilian workforce.
2. 1948 — Hill Air Force Base eraHill Field renamed Hill Air Force Base. Membership expanded to military personnel and their dependents alongside civilian workers.
3. 1970s-1990s — Regional expansionBranch network spread across Utah's Wasatch Front and into surrounding regions. Field of membership broadened to federal employees and Select Employer Groups.
4. 2000s — Multi-state footprintBranches opened in Nevada, Arizona, and Idaho. Community-based eligibility added for qualifying counties.
5. 2010s-2020s — Top-tier scaleAssets crossed $10B then $20B. Branch count reached 116 across seven states. Digital banking and mobile apps deployed.
6. 2025 — Today$23.3 billion in assets, 1.5 million members, 6th largest US credit union, largest in Utah.

Scale and footprint today

AFCU's current scale places it in the very top tier of US credit unions. The $23.3 billion asset base ranks it 6th in the country by total assets, behind only Navy Federal, State Employees', PenFed, BECU, and SchoolsFirst. Within Utah, AFCU is the single largest credit union by every standard measure — assets, membership, branches, employees, and lending volume.

The 116-branch network concentrates heavily in Utah's Wasatch Front corridor (Salt Lake City, Ogden, Provo, Riverdale) but extends meaningfully into Las Vegas and Henderson in Nevada, the Phoenix and Tucson metros in Arizona, the Boise area in Idaho, and select markets in New Mexico, southern California, and Oregon. Members traveling outside the footprint use the CO-OP Shared Branch network at participating credit unions nationwide and 30,000+ surcharge-free CO-OP and Allpoint ATMs.

Leadership and governance

AFCU is led by a professional executive team reporting to a member-elected board of directors. The board sets strategic direction, approves major capital decisions, and oversees executive compensation; the management team handles operations, lending, deposits, technology, branches, and risk. Senior leadership functions cover finance, lending, member experience, technology, human resources, marketing, compliance, and internal audit — a standard structure for a credit union of this size.

Because AFCU is member-owned, every member is eligible to vote in annual board elections and may run for a board seat by collecting the required member signatures. This direct accountability is a structural feature of cooperative governance not available at investor-owned banks. Annual meetings provide a public venue where members can ask questions of leadership about financial performance, strategy, and member service quality.

Overview & Key Features

America First Credit Union is the 6th largest US credit union with $23.3 billion in assets, 1.5 million members, and 116 branches across seven states. Founded in 1939 by 59 Hill Field civilian employees in Utah, AFCU is a member-owned, NCUA-insured cooperative headquartered in Riverdale, Utah. It is the largest credit union in Utah and employs roughly 3,150 staff.

• Founded: March 23, 1939 by 59 Hill Field civilian employees in northern Utah
• Headquarters: 1344 W 4675 S, Riverdale, Utah 84405
• Assets: $23.3 billion as of September 2025
• Members: More than 1.5 million across seven western states
• Branches: 116 locations in UT, NV, AZ, ID, NM, CA, OR
• Employees: Roughly 3,150 staff across the multi-state footprint
• Rank: 6th largest US credit union, largest in Utah
• Regulator: National Credit Union Administration (NCUA), federal charter, $250K insurance

Community and charitable footprint

AFCU's community work spans financial education programs in Utah and Nevada schools, sponsorships of community events through its branch network, scholarship programs for member students, and the AFCU Foundation, which funds local charitable causes through member-directed giving. The credit union also participates in disaster response in the markets it serves, deploying loan deferrals, fee waivers, and short-term assistance for members affected by natural disasters.

Annual community giving figures appear in the credit union's published reports. Compared to community-bank giving on a percent-of-assets basis, AFCU sits in the upper range for institutions of its scale — a function of both the cooperative mandate to reinvest in member communities and the practical reality that nearly all AFCU branches sit in markets where members live and work.

People also ask about America First Credit Union

When was America First Credit Union founded?

America First Credit Union was founded on March 23, 1939, originally chartered to serve 59 civilian employees of Hill Field (now Hill Air Force Base) in northern Utah. The 59 founders each contributed $5 to capitalize the cooperative. The credit union has operated continuously since then for 87 years.

Where is AFCU headquartered?

AFCU is headquartered in Riverdale, Utah at 1344 W 4675 S, with branches across seven western states. Back-office operations and the corporate leadership team are concentrated in the Wasatch Front corridor of northern Utah, the same region where the credit union was originally chartered.

How large is America First Credit Union?

AFCU holds $23.3 billion in assets as of September 2025, serves more than 1.5 million members, operates 116 branches, and employs roughly 3,150 staff. By total assets it ranks 6th among US credit unions and is the largest credit union in Utah by every standard measure.

Is AFCU a bank or a credit union?

AFCU is a federally chartered credit union, not a bank. It is owned by its members rather than outside shareholders and is regulated by the National Credit Union Administration (NCUA). Federal deposit insurance covers up to $250,000 per depositor per ownership category, the same ceiling that applies to FDIC-insured banks.

Why is it called America First Credit Union?

The name reflects the cooperative's mid-20th-century branding choice and predates any modern political usage of the phrase. The institution has been continuously named America First Credit Union since well before the contemporary political associations of the term, and it operates as a federally chartered cooperative with members across the political spectrum.