FARMERS BRANCH, Texas (3/3/15)--Consumers from Texas, Oklahoma and Arkansas who picked credit unions over banks to manage their finances last year appear to have made the right choice, according to recent numbers from the Cornerstone Credit Union League.

(Cornerstone Credit Union League Graphic)

Based on the league's research, credit unions in the three states managed an average of $9,000 in savings per member in 2014 (Leaguer March 2).

Further, credit unions provided an average of nearly $7,000 in loans to each member--increasing total portfolio assets by more than 10%, or $6.2 billion--and granted more than 3.1 million new loans.

"That's nearly 12,000 loans issued every business day, or 25 loans every minute," the league said.

More than one-quarter of all residents in the states' combined populations used a credit union last year.

The report also found that credit unions:

• Issued nearly $36 billion in new loans, or roughly $98 million per day;
• pent more than $1.6 billion on compensation for nearly 24,500 employees;
• pent nearly $129,000 per day to train and educate employees;
• Purchased more than $133 million in advertising and promotional materials;
• Paid more than $1.1 million per day for professional and outside services; and
• Paid more than $1.7 billion for goods and services in their local communities.