ARLINGTON, Va.-A significant regulatory focus in 2011-risk management-will remain a focus in 2012.
Steve Van Beek, NAFCU's director of regulatory compliance, expects NCUA to continue to look more closely at risk-management issues.
"They're looking toward interest rate risk regulations in the future, as well as concentration risk in the future, and even enterprise risk management-things other regulators have focused on in the past and now NCUA is focusing on after seeing issues with other credit unions."
Van Beek added that while NCUA has issued Letters to Credit Unions emphasizing risk management and internal controls, the agency now seems to be moving toward issuing specific regulations.
Van Beek also suggested that CUs seek out a variety of sources for compliance information (he runs NAFCU's compliance blog at nafcucomplianceblog.typepad.com).
"In the past, credit unions were able to look directly to NCUA for a lot of the regulations that were affecting them, but now it's a bit broader," he said, pointing to the likes of the CFPB, Federal Reserve and more. "Credit unions are having to not only look out for regulations, but look out for trends" coming from organizations like the CFPB or NCUA. "Almost being a little more proactive even before a rule becomes proposed-that's something credit unions are going to need to get used to."
Another thing for CUs to get used to-the fast pace of new regs and changes to existing regulations. "Some of these new regulations, whether it comes from the Credit Card Act or some of the mortgage regulations, have been a lot more specific than what we may have seen from regulations in the past," said Van Beek, adding that not only will the speed of new regulations continue, but so will the increased attention to detail.
