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Economy

Financial Giant USAA Gets Downgraded After Debanking Trump Lawyer, Going Woke

2025-06-10

[Federalist] For almost my entire military career and beyond, USAA, the San Antonio-based insurance and financial services giant that built its reputation serving military members and their families, provided my family with auto and home insurance, and even a credit card.

But as I wrote last year, I left USAA after a long slide in customer service crystalized when I heard of USAA’s debanking of conservative lawyer John Eastman. And the hard lessons for USAA continue.

USAA’s troubles hit a new low when S&P Global Ratings downgraded its financial strength rating from AA+ to AA, following Moody’s decision to drop USAA’s rating from Aaa to Aa1 on May 19. The culprit? Persistent issues with USAA Federal Savings Bank, which has attracted regulatory scrutiny and suffered financial losses.

S&P pointed to "new or continuing violations of law, rule, or regulation" flagged by the Office of the Comptroller of the Currency (OCC) in December 2024, noting that the bank’s compliance failures have eroded USAA’s overall earnings diversity. Up until 2020, the bank contributed roughly $1 billion annually to USAA’s pretax income, but since then it has posted average annual losses of $236 million. These financial stumbles, combined with a weakened resilience compared to peers, led to the downgrade.

Once a low-cost haven for service members, veterans, and their families, USAA’s troubles suggest a company veering off course, prioritizing ideological agendas over its foundational mission.

While USAA insists its financial strength remains "outstanding," the downgrades tell a different story. The company’s banking arm, once a steady contributor, is now a liability, dragging down its reputation and financial stability. Instead of addressing these core issues, USAA has yet to correct its path that alienates its conservative-leaning customer base — a base that, according to a 2019 Pew Research poll, leans 59 percent Republican among veterans.

Posted by:Besoeker

#7 Their insurance branch expanded recklessly. They were much too aggressive moving into Medicare co-insurance; approving all applications regardless of pre-exsisting conditions! I watched for years as they continued to do this. It was nuts.

Posted by: Difar Dave 2025-06-10 18:15

#6 latest yelp average was 1.5 stars

at least its higher than the yelp rating of the Dallas Cowboys which is 1 star and also is their team symbol

Posted by: lord garth 2025-06-10 16:45

#5 My understanding is that the next modification of customer eligibility will be anyone who promised they once saw Saving Private Ryan.

Posted by: NoMoreBS 2025-06-10 14:33

#4 ^^^^^^^
nails it!

Posted by: NoMoreBS 2025-06-10 14:27

#3 About the time the retired military disappeared from the board and were replaced by 'professional' managers.

Posted by: Procopius2k 2025-06-10 11:29

#2 I think USAA had shown it's ass about 10 years ago.

Posted by: swksvolFF 2025-06-10 10:53

#1 Along with USAA, US Bank, Card Member Services, and Fidelity are debanking conservatives.

Posted by: The Walking Unvaxed 2025-06-10 09:06

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