PayThink

A credit union is like a bank, except where a bank is owned by its shareholders, a credit union is owned by its members, in other words it's owned by you.

Numerous credit unions have committed to a culture of growth that supports top-line growth and stellar performance.

Insider or outsider? It's the wrong question.

T-Mobile's flexible pricing strategy is forcing its major telecommunications competitors to change. Bankers should take note, given the carrier’s recent foray into financial services.

Emerging innovation and its associated risk management is increasingly moving away from the large Wall Street banks, which are reducing their risk-taking and associated costs significantly.

This behind-the-scenes attempt to shut down legal tribal businesses represents a total departure from more than a century of respect for, and engagement with, tribal governments as partners and co-regulators on issues ranging from law enforcement to economic development to education.

The recent security breaches at Nieman Marcus and Target remind us in the payments industry that as criminal efforts to steal cardholder data become more sophisticated, so must the methods we use to prevent these crimes.

Post-crisis structural changes will trigger a wave of community bank M&A, creating new regional bank powerhouses. Investors will pressure management to acquire, sell or return capital through dividends or repurchases. There will be no runners-up in the coming consolidation.

Recent guidance from the Justice Department and Treasury was intended to clarify federal policy. Policy statements, however well meaning, do not provide true legal protection. Only legislation can do that.

Like the Postal Service, small banks must radically change their business model, expect more consolidations and mergers, focus on critical services and avoid relying on the U.S. government for help – it could make things worse.