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CURRENT Newsletter | 18 February 2021

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Compliance / Regulatory Affairs

Training & Education

Financial Services / Economy

News From Credit Unions

Headline News

League Hosting Virtual Hike The Hill Event March 2-4

Join us March 2-4 for your League's virtual Hike The Hill event for an opportunity to meet with Virginia's Congressional delegation and advocate for our federal legislative agenda.

To date, we've scheduled the following meetings:

After you register for an event, your confirmation email will contain a direct link to the meeting's web location/URL.

We also hold a pre-event briefing on March 1! Stay tuned for details!

Learn more

FISERV Hosting Free Webinar Feb. 25 on Fraud Trends

As 2021 begins to take shape, the pandemic has seen consumers move to and embrace e-commerce channels. As the payment shift continues, what are the impacts to fraud and what can credit unions continue to do to mitigate their risk? FISERV, your partner in payments, will continue its exploration into fraud trends that matter to your credit union during our Feb. 25 webinar.

Start time for the free, hour-long webinar is 10 a.m.

Register here

League Hosting Compliance, Regulatory Update Webinar March 17

Join us March 17 for a free compliance/regulatory update with attorney Jay Spruill. The hour-long webinar (10 a.m. start time) will cover frequently asked questions on the League compliance hotline, key federal regulatory issues, and any recently enacted state laws that might affect your operations.

Also, feel free to send your questions prior to the webinar to your League’s Mary Amyx at mamyx@vacul.org. She’ll gladly forward them to Jay to ensure they are covered during the webinar.

Learn more and register here.

Virtual Front-line, Teller Training Coming March 10; Register Now!

Your League is offering a dynamic, after-hours virtual training for your front-line employees on March 10. This interactive, virtual program focuses on six modules that remind the teller how important their job is, how significant their actions are, and tips on improving how they interact with members. This teller-training program is information-packed and attention grabbing! Employees will leave this workshop with a renewed commitment to excel on the job.

DATE: March 10.
TIME: 5:30 p.m.-7:30 p.m.
EDUCATIONAL INVESTMENT: $39 for CUs less than $10 million in assets; $69 for CUs $10 million-$100 million; $99 for CUs with more than $100 million in assets.

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Mid-Level Management Leadership Series Registration Available

Focusing on mid-level managers is important to your credit union’s success. Your credit union's mid-level managers, branch managers, and department leads are often the primary point-of-contact for employees. Their management style, good or bad, has a tremendous impact on employee performance and workplace well-being. It is extremely important for credit unions to invest in the professional development and personal growth of their mid-level leaders.

The Mid-Level Management Leadership Series is a four-part virtual learning experience (March 10 & 11, April 14 & 28) specifically designed to provide mid-level leaders with the skills and tools they need to lead effectively, remove barriers and optimize performance.

Educational Investment: $425 per person. This series is hosted by our TRGroup partner, the Kentucky Credit Union League. You'll need to complete a short registration process for the Kentucky League's website to register for the training. 

Learn more

Out with 2020 … and In With the All-New CU PolicyPro!

We are excited to announce that CU PolicyPro is currently undergoing a complete rebuild that will be rolled out in early 2021! The new system will continue to provide the great model policy content you’ve come to expect, but the new system will offer a fully redesigned policy management system!

Stay tuned for more information on the new features (policy review assignments, anyone?) and information on the conversion process in the coming weeks!

GAC Keynote Speaker H.R. McMaster: ‘Be Right There With Them’

Build a cohesive team that understands its purpose and mission by demonstrating those actions yourself.

“If you want people to treat each other respectfully, you should treat people with respect. If you want a team that’s committed to excellence, you have to set the example yourself,” says H.R. McMaster, former U.S. National Security Advisor. “If you want a team that is willing to endure hardships for the accomplishment of the mission, you’ve got to be right there with them.”

McMaster will give the opening keynote address on Tuesday, March 2, during the CUNA Governmental Affairs Conference.

McMaster served in the White House as National Security Advisor from 2017 to 2018 and is a nationally recognized authority on leadership, global security, and international affairs.

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Compliance / Regulatory Affairs

NCUA Failed to Inform Examiners of Consumer Complaints: IG Report Say

The NCUA does an effective job of investigating consumer complaints, but often does not determine whether the complaint was a violation that should be sent to agency officials conducting examinations of credit unions, the agency Inspector General said, in a just-released report.

“Based on our review of complaints, we determined that the agency’s consumer complaint process focuses mostly on assisting consumers with resolving consumer complaints with their credit union as opposed to determining whether the credit union has violated a law or regulation,” the IG said.

The report is particularly timely, as the NCUA board debates whether the agency should focus more attention on consumer protection issues. New board Chairman Todd Harper has said that the NCUA is the only banking regulator that does not conduct separate consumer protection tests and that he wants a more concentrated focus on the issue.

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Overdraft Proposal Would Help CUs Meet Evolving Member Needs

NCUA’s proposed overdraft policy is part of the agency’s proactivity in adapting rules, regulations, and policies to ensure credit unions can meet evolving needs of their members, CUNA wrote Tuesday.

Specifically, the proposal would remove the prescriptive 45-day limit for a member to cure each overdraft and replace with a requirement that the written policy establish a specific time limit that is both “reasonable and applicable to all members.”

The amended overdraft policy would still require the federal credit union to “establish a specific time limit” to cure the overdraft but it may exceed 45 days.

“The Overdraft Policy proposal is a perfect example of the agency’s ingenuity and we recommend the Board act quickly to implement the proposed change so that credit unions can amend their policies, as they deem appropriate, in the interest of assisting financially distressed members,” the letter reads.

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Related: CUs May Be Headed for Showdown With Harper on Overdraft Rule

CFPB Issues Rule on HPML Escrow Exemption

The Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) has issued a final rule, effective Feb. 17, 2021, amending section 1026.35 of Regulation Z to implement a requirement of the Economic Growth, Regulatory Relief, and Consumer Protection Act.

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Fitch Expects US to Catch Up to Peers on Climate Change Regulation for Banks

Taking note of the President Joe Biden's administration's moves to fight climate change, Fitch Ratings expects U.S. financial regulators to step up efforts to incorporate growing climate-related risks into the regulation of financial institutions.

Fitch noted that greater focus on such risks would enable the country to catch up to regulatory peers in other major developed countries.

The rating agency said that while U.S. banks have not had material losses due to climate-related events, more extreme weather-related physical risks and uncertain transition risks from future policy decisions "can pose complex risks and vulnerabilities to abrupt repricing events."

Compared to developed market governments, the U.S. has been a "notable laggard" when it comes to addressing such vulnerabilities, Fitch said. (S&P Global Market Intelligence, Feb. 17)

Training & Education

CUNA Financial Counseling Certification Program eSchool Announced

As credit union financial counselors have a proven impact to decrease delinquency rates, CUNA has announced CUNA Financial Counseling Certification Program (FiCEP) eSchool to be held June 9 through Aug. 25.

The eSchool is designed for a variety of credit union staff positions for credit unions to offer financial counseling expertise to their members. Attendees of the eSchool have an opportunity to earn the Certified Credit Union Financial Counselor (CCUFC) certification. Since 2011, credit unions with at least one CCUFC averaged a 52.7% decline in delinquency rates.

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Financial Services / Economy

Cash-Out Refis Help Drive Pandemic-Era Mortgage Boom

A fuller picture of the factors that drove the great U.S. mortgage boom of 2020 is starting to emerge.

The homebuyers who took advantage of rock-bottom mortgage rates during the pandemic included many investors and purchasers of second homes who flocked to the market at levels unseen since before the Great Recession, according to new data from the Federal Reserve Bank of New York.

Cash-out refinancings also hit a post-financial-crisis high, as many households tapped into the equity they have accumulated as home prices have climbed over the last decade. Mortgage origination volume last year totaled $3.7 trillion, by far the highest level since 2003.

The data is most notable for one major contrast that it reveals between the current boom and the previous one: borrowers’ creditworthiness. Last year, roughly 70% of mortgage borrowers had credit scores of 760 or higher, compared with around 30% in 2003. (American Banker, Feb. 17)

Household Debt Rises to $14.6 Trillion Due to Record-Breaking Rise in Mortgage Loans

Total consumer debt rose to nearly $14.6 trillion as 2020 came to a close, pushed by a record-breaking rise for mortgages in the red-hot housing market, according to a Federal Reserve report Wednesday.

Debt increased 1.4% for the final three months, representing another $206 billion as households took advantage of low interest rates and continued fiscal and monetary stimulus.

Mortgage debt passed $10 trillion for the first time and rose at the fastest pace in the fourth quarter since 2006. The quarterly increase of $182 billion culminated a year in which homeowners took advantage of low rates to refinance and as city dwellers moved to suburbs amid the continuing shift brought during the Covid-19 pandemic.

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FedNow Service Will Now Debut in 2023

Over the last several months, the Federal Reserve (Fed) has made significant strides toward its program milestones for the FedNow Service. As a result, it has amended the industrywide launch timing for this instant payments platform to 2023 narrowing the delivery timeframe by a full year. The 2019 announcement indicated industrywide availability in 2023 or 2024.

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News From Credit Unions

ValleyStar Credit Union Announces First-Ever Chief Information Officer 

ValleyStar Credit Union announces Cheri Spence as its first chief information officer to lead the path of innovation, bringing mutual success, community engagement and a supportive work environment. While serving as chairwoman of the Entrust Financial Credit Union, Cheri joined the ValleyStar Board of Directors after the merger in 2019 and has a deep understanding of the Credit Union’s vision “to improve the quality of life and the financial well-being of our members, community, and employees.” Cheri’s leadership, experience and passion will drive success throughout the ValleyStar communities both locally and globally. 

Learn more



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