Links in “Credit Unions”

The credit union community has raised over $525,000 in pledges for this Sunday’s Cherry Blossom 10-mile run in Washington, DC.  Over 15,000 runners are expected to participate and 165 members of Congress have signed on to serve as honorary race chairs.  Proceeds from the run go to the Children’s Miracle Network. [4/7/15]

The NCUA plans to ask Congress to amend the Federal Credit Union Act to allow for a risk-based NCUSIF insurance premium system. The NCUA claims that the current 1.3% equity ratio cap is too restrictive. [4/7/15]

For those credit unions who received fines because they filed their 5300 Call Report after the due date, the irony of this story should be apparent.  NCUA, for the 3^rd year in a row, has missed the April 1^st deadline for filing its annual report to Congress on agency operations. [4/6/15]

With the CFPB’s crackdown on payday lenders, some in Congress are suggesting that the U.S. Postal system could present an alternative avenue for consumers who need access to short-term cash.  The postal service’s brick and mortar delivery system is an attractive option, but does it really make sense to use a 19^th century business model to serve the “unbanked?” [4/6/15]

The CFPB has recently issued another edition of its Supervisory Highlights  for the period July 2014 through December 2014.  Credit unions should take a moment to review the report as it highlights the areas on focus by the agency’s examiners and discusses the types of problems they found. [4/6/15]

NCUA’s Office of the Inspector General has issued a report on its review of travel expenses and corporate credit card activity for Oct 1, 2012 — Sept 30, 2013, and noted that the activity poses low risk of illegal or improper purchases.  The report recommends additional staff training on which charges are allowable and recommends that direct supervisors conduct quarterly reviews of expense reimbursements and card transactions. [4/6/15]

Some credit unions that have dropped “credit union” from their name when promoting their services report no backlash from their members, but are these credit unions missing the opportunity to capitalize on a brand that is consistently cited by consumers as providing the best in financial services? [4/3/15]

Now sentenced to three years in federal prison, the former Operations Manager of the $22 million Georgia Power Valdosta FCU put in place a clever scheme that managed to hide her fraudulent transactions while working for the credit union and for three years after she left employment with the credit union. [4/3/15]

NAFCU CEO Dan Berger says that the request by the Food Marketing Institute to delay the October date for the EMV liability switch is a “smoke and mirrors” ploy designed to distract Congress from important data security issues.  The Institute claims that the requested delay is due to concerns about the costs for new technology and concern for longer lines for retail customers. [4/3/15]

FICO, along with LexisNexis and Equifax, is starting a pilot program with 12 of the largest credit card issuers for a new credit scoring model designed for consumers with thin credit files.  The model incorporates alternative data, such as property records and information from telecommunication and utility companies. [4/3/15]