All but one of the largest credit unions in Wisconsin operated in the black through the first three quarters of this year, helped by an easing of rules that allows them to spread out the cost of replenishing the industry's hard-hit deposit insurance fund.

The only top-10 credit union to post a loss during the period, Madison-based Summit Credit Union, said Wednesday it, too, will be profitable by the end of the year, in part because it no longer plans to absorb its payment to the insurance fund all at once this year.

When regulators created uncertainty by boosting the original estimate for Summit's contribution to the fund by another $1 million or so, the credit union rethought its strategy and now plans to space out payments like many other credit unions, said Kim Sponem, president of Summit.

Through Sept. 30, Summit had a loss of $105,874.

"You'll see that number significantly improve at year end," Sponem said.

The need for replenishing the credit union deposit insurance fund is the result of trouble in a part of the industry known as corporate credit unions, which are large, member-owned institutions that offer services such as check clearing, cash delivery and investment services for rank-and-file credit unions. Some corporate credit unions have taken big losses related to investment in mortgage-backed securities, cutting into the fund.

The National Credit Union Administration's deposit insurance fund is similar to the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation's fund for bank deposits.

Wisconsin's largest credit union, Landmark Credit Union, generated the highest net income through three-fourths of the year, $13.9 million, according to records from the NCUA, which is the national regulator of the industry.

Credit unions are like banks in many ways, but they are not-for-profit cooperatives owned by members instead of stockholders. Like banks, many have seen delinquent loans increase amid a weak economy and rising unemployment.

At Eau Claire's Royal Credit Union, for instance, 2.9% of all loans were delinquent at the end of the third quarter, compared with 1.21% in the same span a year ago, NCUA figures show.

Brett Thompson, chief executive of the Wisconsin Credit Union League, said that taking into account the economic climate, the state's credit unions are performing as they should. Wisconsin credit unions have one of the highest loan-to-deposit ratios in the county, which means they are continuing to make loans, he said.

"I think everything is kind of viewed though a relative perspective these days," Thompson said. "Given how the economy has been, given how various sectors of the financial arena have been hit, I think our credit unions feel like they are weathering the storm very well."

Thompson said he expects more mergers of smaller credit unions into bigger ones. This year alone, New Berlin-based Landmark has acquired four smaller Milwaukee-area credit unions, including troubled Allco Credit Union.

"The primary drivers will be two things," Thompson said. "One, it will depend on how much the economy turns around and how quickly, and two, it also will depend on the speed with which the regulatory burden felt by credit unions increases."

In addition, Thompson said, "it's getting harder and harder for small institutions to keep up with and be compliant with these various regulations that are being passed."