CUNA Agrees To Join NAFCU On Alternative Capital Issue

WASHINGTON–CUNA said yesterday it would join a call by NAFCU to lobby for greater access to alternative capital for credit unions. CUNA reported it will join the federal credit unions’ trade group to push for “member-only alternative capital at this time.”
In a statement, CUNA said it continues to “insist that alternative capital proposals should encompass as many options as possible to help more credit unions,” and that “broader access for credit unions to capital, and the ability of credit unions to determine for themselves, based on their needs and membership, whether that capital should come strictly from membership or other sources.”CUNA made its comments in a memo to NAFCU about alternative capital legislative proposals, stressing that “the need of a number of credit unions for alternative capital is real and immediate.”
CUNA is calling for the legislative proposals on alternative capital to be modified to include a number of additional sources for credit unions, including government assistance, other credit unions, CU sponsors and select employee groups, and others. It also is urging changes be made to Prompt Corrective Action (PCA rules). On Friday, Sept. 25, NAFCU called on CUNA to support draft language for a bill to authorize all credit unions to raise alternative capital from existing members, with several conditions.Over the weekend, NAFCU President Fred Becker told Credit Union Journal the industry is exploring several legislative avenues to boost credit union capital, which could also include enactment of risk-based capital, a solution that has eluded credit unions for the past decade. Becker said at that time that NAFCU was seeking to arrive at a consensus with CUNA, before asking for NCUA’s support.