Citizens Equity First Credit Union is a federally insured

credit union A credit union, a type of financial institution similar to a commercial bank, is a member-owned nonprofit financial cooperative. Credit unions generally provide services to members similar to retail banks, including deposit accounts, provision ...

based in

Peoria, Illinois Peoria ( ) is the county seat of Peoria County, Illinois, United States, and the largest city on the Illinois River. As of the 2020 census, the city had a population of 113,150. It is the principal city of the Peoria Metropolitan Area in Centr ...

, commonly referred to by its registered trademark, CEFCU. CEFCU was founded in 1937 to serve the employees of

Caterpillar Tractor Company Caterpillar Inc. (stock symbol CAT) is an American Fortune 100, ''Fortune'' 500 corporation and the world's largest construction-equipment manufacturer. In 2018, Caterpillar was ranked number 65 on the ''Fortune'' 500 list and number 238 on the ...

. It began as Caterpillar Employees Credit Union (CECU) with a state credit union charter, then switched to a federal credit union charter and the name CEFCU (Caterpillar Employees Federal Credit Union). Upon legally separating from Caterpillar, CEFCU changed its acronym to more accurately reflect membership eligibility; first, to "Construction Equipment Federal Credit Union" and, later, to "Citizens Equity Federal Credit Union." CEFCU returned to an Illinois state credit union charter in 2000, keeping the acronym CEFCU ("Citizens Equity First Credit Union") and maintaining federal deposit ("share") insurance under the

National Credit Union Share Insurance Fund The National Credit Union Share Insurance Fund provides deposit insurance to protect the accounts of credit union members at federally insured institutions in the United States. Created in 1970, the Share Insurance Fund is administered by the Na ...

. CEFCU membership criteria allow employees of Caterpillar Inc. and Caterpillar dealers, partner companies (those working for about 550 specific companies with a CEFCU relationship), plus individuals who live or work in fourteen central

Illinois Illinois ( ) is a state in the Midwestern United States. Its largest metropolitan areas include the Chicago metropolitan area, and the Metro East section, of Greater St. Louis. Other smaller metropolitan areas include, Peoria and Roc ...

counties, or who live, work, or worship in three

California California is a state in the Western United States, located along the Pacific Coast. With nearly 39.2million residents across a total area of approximately , it is the most populous U.S. state and the 3rd largest by area. It is also the ...

counties to belong to the credit union. Individuals living or working in the following

counties are eligible for CEFCU membership:

Bond Bond or bonds may refer to: Common meanings * Bond (finance), a type of debt security * Bail bond, a commercial third-party guarantor of surety bonds in the United States * Chemical bond, the attraction of atoms, ions or molecules to form chemica ...

Christian Christians () are people who follow or adhere to Christianity, a monotheistic Abrahamic religion based on the life and teachings of Jesus Christ. The words '' Christ'' and ''Christian'' derive from the Koine Greek title ''Christós'' (Χρ ...

Clinton Clinton is an English toponymic surname, indicating one's ancestors came from English places called Glympton or Glinton.Hanks, P. & Hodges, F. ''A Dictionary of Surnames''. Oxford University Press, 1988 Clinton has frequently been used as a given ...

, Fulton, Jersey,

Knox Knox may refer to: Places United States * Fort Knox, a United States Army post in Kentucky ** United States Bullion Depository, a high security storage facility commonly called Fort Knox * Fort Knox (Maine), a fort located on the Penobscot River i ...

, Livingston,

Logan Logan may refer to: Places * Mount Logan (disambiguation) Australia * Logan (Queensland electoral district), an electoral district in the Queensland Legislative Assembly * Logan, Victoria, small locality near St. Arnaud * Logan City, local g ...

McLean MacLean, also spelt Maclean and McLean, is a Gaelic surname Mac Gille Eathain, or, Mac Giolla Eóin in Irish Gaelic), Eóin being a Gaelic form of Johannes (John). The clan surname is an Anglicisation of the Scottish Gaelic "Mac Gille Eathain" ...

, Macon, Macoupin, Madison,

Marshall Marshall may refer to: Places Australia * Marshall, Victoria, a suburb of Geelong, Victoria Canada * Marshall, Saskatchewan * The Marshall, a mountain in British Columbia Liberia * Marshall, Liberia Marshall Islands * Marshall Islands, an ...

, Mason, McLean, Monroe, Montgomery, Peoria,

Putnam Putnam may refer to: People * Putnam (surname) Places Canada * Putnam, Ontario, community in Thames Centre United States * Putnam, Alabama * Putnam, Connecticut, a New England town ** Putnam (CDP), Connecticut, the main village in the town ...

, Randolph, Saint Clair, Sangamon, Stark, Tazewell,

Washington Washington commonly refers to: * Washington (state), United States * Washington, D.C., the capital of the United States ** A metonym for the federal government of the United States ** Washington metropolitan area, the metropolitan area centered o ...

, and

Woodford Woodford may refer to: Places Australia *Woodford, New South Wales *Woodford, Queensland, a town in the Moreton Bay Region *Woodford, Victoria Canada *Woodford, Ontario England *Woodford, Cornwall *Woodford, Gloucestershire *Woodford, Greater ...

. The institution now also operates in

, with individuals who live, work or worship in Santa Clara,

Alameda An alameda is a street or path lined with trees () and may refer to: Places Canada *Alameda, Saskatchewan, town in Saskatchewan **Grant Devine Dam, formerly ''Alameda Dam'', a dam and reservoir in southern Saskatchewan Chile * Alameda (Santiago ...

and Contra Costa counties eligible to join CEFCU.

References

Companies based in Peoria, Illinois Banks established in 1937 Credit unions based in Illinois Caterpillar Inc. {{US-finance-company-stub