BankThink

In the business of growing checking account revenue, we see clear winners and losers as a result of the Fed's proposed rulemaking on the Durbin Amendment, and some for whom the status quo will continue to exist.

On behalf of the Board of Directors, employees, and partners of Northeast CUSO we want to take this opportunity to express our deepest gratitude to Fred Healey for his years of service to our company.

The Fed's data dump Thursday was at least as noteworthy for how it was disclosed as for what it disclosed. The information was made available on computer disks – wait, people still use those? ­– that reporters could pick up from the Fed’s building in Washington (or have mailed to them if they were willing to wait). Viewable on the disks were reams of documents captured in an overwhelming number of unsearchable PDF images meant to be opened one by one.

It is high time mortgage lenders stopped acting like victims and started exercising the responsibility that comes with the rich fees they earn from lending. And why on earth would banks not want to police their brokers?

Maybe the idea was that banks were too stupid to see that they needed to "consider" ability to pay, but once compelled to consider it, they would make better lending decisions.

A number of years ago an executive from Marriott Hotels was speaking to a credit union audience about that company's management practices and some of the lessons it has learned. That included being especially responsive to guest feedback. And yet, as that saying goes about the best-laid plans...

Real-time personal marketing might seem like fiction, but it's becoming a reality as the mass customization movement picks up steam.

With the issuance of NCUA's Letter to Credit Unions on concentration risk, many credit unions are taking a long look at their overall risk-management processes.

Two-tiers, ATM exemptions, unbundling value-added services, Fed neutrality, Congressional ambivalence, Odd-Fellow lawsuits, and a host of Chickens Little squawking about their piece of the sky falling on everyone's head. Does anyone wonder why this Great Interchange Debate is so confusing?

From the What Goes Around Comes Around Department: In case you missed it, there was an interesting insight shared in the Feb. 28 issue by Steve Goldberg, exeutive director of the CUNA Mutual Foundation.