California, Nevada Meeting Kicks Off Amid Dual Membership Debate
November 5, 2015 10:30 AM
Jim Nussle
Just as the California and Nevada Credit Union Leagues' annual meeting was kicking off on the West Coast, the New York Credit Union Association announced it is calling on the CUNA Board to reconsider a task force's recommendation that the dual CUNA/League membership requirement be eliminated. Moments after NYCUA's statement was released, the Mountain West Credit Union Association issued a statement in support of the dual membership requirement. Meanwhile, CUNA CEO Jim Nussle addressed this topic during the opening general session of the league meeting in Palm Desert, Calif.
Though Nussle still insisted that the dual membership requirement is what is best for the industry, he added that he was hired to modernize the largest national credit union trade association, and changes are coming.
Diana Dykstra
California and Nevada CU Leagues President Diana Dykstra also discussed the dual membership requirement at the opening general session of the leagues' annual meeting, promising more dialogue to come on the topic, even as she offered support for retaining CUNA/League interdependence. "Offering choice without considering the ramifications could lead to loss of unity," Dykstra said. "The winner would be American Bankers Association. They are waiting for the breakup of this powerful system. The CUNA/league system works well together."
Jon Hernandez and Wally Murray
Also at the CCUL/NCUL opening general session Jon Hernandez, chairman of the California CU League, and Wally Murray, chairman of the Nevada CU League, said the picture is good for credit unions, despite the burden of regulations. Said Hernandez, "We continue to provide a great value proposition to credit unions. The league has a 90% affiliation rate, and this conference has higher attendance this year compared to the last two years." Murray said CUs in the two states "continue to see strong growth in members and capital, and in members being satisfied. The CFPB continues in adopting regulations at an alarming rate, but credit unions continue to be people helping people."
Chuck Bruen Shapiro Award
The California CU League awarded its highest individual honor, the Leo H. Shapiro Lifetime Achievement Award to Chuck Bruen, president and CEO of First Entertainment CU since 1987.
Pablos Holman
Pablos Holman, a futurist, inventor and hacker who runs Intellectual Ventures Lab in the Silicon Valley, told attendees the brains of hackers work differently: They get a gadget and instead of asking, "What does this do?" they ask, "What can I make this do?" And for those who take a dim view of hackers, Holman said, "With no people like this, we would never get anything new."
Holman warned CUs information from the new chip cards can be stolen right through a person's wallet. He said the credit card industry does not have a security program, it has a risk management problem. "The risk gets pushed to the merchant. The credit card industry makes money off of fraud," he said.
While technology is changing the way most people live their lives, Holman said Credit unions are an industry designed not to change much. "Disruption means your competitors change faster than you," he said. Holman said statistically, every credit card number has already been stolen, and it is just a matter of if someone has tried to use it. "Stop issuing debit cards," he said. "If someone steals a debit card and hacks it, they can take all my money. If someone hacks my credit card, that is someone else's money."
