Filene: CUs Less Vulnerable To Econ. Cycle Than Banks
MADISON, Wis.-Credit unions are much less susceptible to the businesss cycle than their banking counterparts according to a new study from Filene Research Institute set to be released in about a week.
"Both certainly suffer when unemployment rises, but the trajectory and magnitude of delinquencies and charge-offs at banks-especially during the latest downturn-are much more pronounced," authors David Smith and Stephen Woodbury wrote.
Specifically, Filene's research indicated that with every 1% rise in unemployment, bank lending declined by 1.15%, but lending at credit unions did not correlate with the rise in joblessness. The research also indicated that more open charters have not made credit unions more risky as conservative portfolio management has remained en vogue in the credit union movement, likely because of the member-owned governance structure. The report calls upon regulators to recognize CUs' ability to absorb macroeconomic shocks by lowering capital requirements because of the lower risk.
Helping Hands Award Winners Announced
NEW YORK-The National Federation of Community Development Credit Union announced this year's winners of the Annie Vamper "Helping Hands" Award for CDCU staff and volunteers. The 2010 winners are Rebecca Anderson, board secretary and supervisory committee chair at Northwest Baptist FCU in Seattle and Marcus Bordelon, CEO of Brea, Ky.-based Appalachian FCU.
Anderson created Northwest Baptist's Youth CU Program in 1993 and continues to lead the organization to this day, helping young people learn financial management skills. She has also worked with the Federation's yoth network and chaired the task force to coordinate the organization's yearly youth conferences.
Bordelon took over at Appalachian FCU in 1990, at a time when the credit union was facing NCUA to close the institution. But trough his leadership and smart hiring decisions, Bordelon was able to lead the CU out of the darkness and into growth; it is now an $18 million institution that serves 2,200 members in rural Kentucky.
Both individuals will receive their awards during a ceremony at the Federation's 36th annual conference on Serving the Underserved on June 11th in Pittsburgh, Penn.
CUDL Unveils SMART Approval Program
LAS VEGAS-CUDL on Wednesday showed off its newest technology - known as the SMART Approval program - during the Auto & Mortgage Lending Symposium it is co-hosting here with Prime Alliance.
Tony Boutelle, CUDL's president and CEO, told Credit Union Journal SMART Approval is a widget that will sit on a credit union's website with "Get pre-approved" as a call to action. "We have done a really good job of creating a system that is efficient in originating loans at the dealership, but this new program allows credit unions to involve their current members more," he explained. "We are trying to get credit unions focused on reaching their members as normal consumers. A J.D. Power survey found 83% of people who buy a car expect to take care of financing at the dealer. A small number come with pre-approvals, but half of those get flipped to other financing."
According to CUDL, SMART Approval enables credit unions to provide their members with a simple and convenient online pre-approval application and loan decision, through the credit union's website, that streamlines the overall loan process and eliminates member inconvenience of waiting for a loan decision at the dealership.
"Members no longer have to fill out a loan application at the dealer, which skips a lot of the car-buying process and makes for a better member experience," Boutelle said.
Ex-CU Employee Charged In $100K Sting
RANTOUL, Ill.-A one-time employee at Credit Union 1, heard gloating in a recorded conversation, "Miami here I come," was charged with stealing $100,000 from the credit union with account information provided by a current employee.
Ronald Winston Jr., 23, and Alana Atchison were charged in a three-count indictment, unsealed Monday, with participating in the scheme to steal from Credit Union 1.
