Callahan Associates

About Callahan Associates

Founded in 1985, Callahan & Associates is a Washington, D.C.-based firm dedicated to serving the credit union industry. The company was established by Ed Callahan, a former National Credit Union Administration (NCUA) Chairman, alongside Bucky Sebastian and Chip Filson. Their shared goal was to help credit unions prosper by fostering collaboration, providing actionable data, and promoting change within the industry. The firm is now 100% employee-owned, a transition that began with an Employee Stock Ownership Plan (ESOP) in 2003 and was completed in 2018.

Callahan & Associates provides a suite of products and services designed to empower credit unions. The company's core business revolves around data and analytics, offering tools like the Peer Suite that allow credit unions to benchmark performance, identify market opportunities, and inform strategic planning. They deliver these insights through various means, including their proprietary platform, publications like CreditUnions.com, webinars, and executive roundtables. The business model is based on serving both credit unions and the vendors that support them, offering data analytics, consulting, advertising, and collaborative programs. In 2024, Callahan & Associates acquired CU Strategic Planning, a firm specializing in Community Development Financial Institutions (CDFI) certification, grant-writing, and compliance services, further expanding its offerings.

The firm's history is marked by significant contributions to the credit union movement. One of its earliest products, The Credit Union Directory, changed how executives accessed industry data. In 1987, it formed the Credit Union Financial Services Limited Partnership (CUFSLP), a collaborative venture that led to the creation of the first credit union-owned mutual fund family. Through strategic alliances and a focus on purpose-driven growth, the company supports over 750 credit unions and 200 industry vendors.