Our Story

Our Mission

As a trusted financial partner, we proudly serve those who serve our communities.

Our Vision

Impacting the lives of our members and communities for generations to come.

About Credit Unions

Your credit union is a federally insured cooperative financial institution owned by its members. Unlike a bank or savings and loan association, a credit union is a not-for-profit financial cooperative and dedicated only to serving its members who share a common bond. Credit union members pool their money to make their collective savings available for low-cost loans to each other.

Since credit unions are not-for-profit, earnings are distributed to members either in the form of better rates on savings or rebates on loans or are invested in new or improved services for the members. Once you deposit money in the credit union, you become a member and shareholder. You can then vote for the credit union’s Board of Directors. Officers and directors are chosen from the membership and serve on a voluntary basis.

History-Established By Des Moines Police Officers

Serve Credit Union, one of the oldest in the state, began serving its members in 1931. Its purpose was to provide credit and savings to Des Moines police officers and their families at a fair and reasonable rate, to encourage habits of thrift, and to provide the opportunity to use and control their savings for their mutual benefit. Thanks to our loyal members, we’ve become a multi-million-dollar financial institution and are now able to provide a much wider selection of benefits and solutions. Over the years, we’ve grown to include all public safety professionals in the State of Iowa, such as but not limited to law enforcement, firefighters, correctional officers, and EMTs.

This growth also gave us the opportunity to merge with other like-minded credit unions, like the USDA Credit Union and the Polk County School Employees Credit Union. These mergers allow us to serve employees from governmental agencies and schools along with their families. This growth and change has been made possible by the integrity of our membership, allowing us to establish a long-standing tradition of providing low-interest loans and high-interest savings. We look forward to serving our members and giving them a strong financial choice for generations to come.

Board of Directors

A big thank you to those who serve as our volunteer Board of Directors!

Safety and Soundness

Serve Credit Union consistently receives high ratings from the Iowa Credit Union Regulatory Agency, confirming our sound management and safe lending practices. Our reserves are considerably above the national average of 10% for credit unions of our size. Each member’s savings are federally insured up to $250,000 by NCUA, a United States government agency.

Regulation and Supervision

Serve Credit Union was state-chartered in 1931 under the provisions of Chapter 533 of the Code of Iowa as the Des Moines Police Officers’ Credit Union. It is regulated by the Superintendent of Credit Unions, who is appointed by the governor to direct and regulate credit unions. The Iowa Credit Union Division of the Department of Commerce conducts annual audits and examinations.

NCUA

The National Credit Union Administration (NCUA) is the independent federal agency created by the U.S. Congress to regulate, charter, and supervise federal credit unions. With the backing of the full faith and credit of the U.S. Government, NCUA operates and manages the National Credit Union Share Insurance Fund, insuring the deposits of more than 92 million account holders up to $250,000 in all federal credit unions, and the overwhelming majority of state-chartered credit unions.