Banking Industry Records Best Quarter Since Crisis

MOSS POINT, Miss.-Not surprisingly, many credit unions that have been through natural disasters reported the need to be fluid with policies as the situation dictates. That can be particularly true with meeting members' emergency needs.

MADISON, Wis.-A team of professionals from the credit union and finance communities has created a mutual fund that aims to make it easier for CUs to package and sell member business loans.

ALEXANDRIA, Va.-Credit union executives are worried an accounting proposal by NCUA that would require credit unions deduct "bargain purchase gain" in mergers of troubled credit unions will have the opposite of its desired effect and, instead, discourage such credit union combinations.

ARLINGTON, Va.-It used to be that interest rates drove mortgage volume, yet volume is flat despite very attractive rates. So what's driving mortgage loans to credit unions right now? Not much-unless you're asking what's driving volume down.

APPLETON, Wis.-Were he in the state legislature or Congress, Glen Ogden, VP of mortgage lending for Community First CU, said he would hesitate "to write a bill that adds yet another layer to an already overburdened industry, but..."

MORENO VALLEY, Calif. — Steve VanSickler, VP of lending and collections for Visterra CU, Moreno Valley, Calif., said recent legislation has placed "great burdens" on the mortgage industry participants that "were heretofore unregulated for the most part."

PHOENIX-The "best" mortgage reform bill would be "no" mortgage reform bill, according to Paul Stull, SVP of strategy and brand for $1.3-billion Arizona State CU.

TUKWILA, Wash.-Proposed rules regarding appraisals have drawn the concern of two officials at $9.5-billion BECU.

LAS VEGAS-Bob Dorsa, president of the American Credit Union Mortgage Association, believes one thing credit unions do not need is any hand-out or carve-out.

Credit Union Journal asked: "If you could write a bill aimed at cleaning up mortgage industry practices, and especially abuses, what would you make sure was in it?"

ANAHEIM, Calif.-There are lessons in management to be had for credit unions from a man who has taken more than 10,000 trips on Disneyland's Jungle Cruise.

ANAHEIM, Calif.-Even if you haven't flown it, you're likely aware the Virgin America brand has a certain "cool" factor to it. What you may be less aware of is the airline's marketing budget is relatively small, especially compared to competitors'.

ANAHEIM, Calif.-When he first rode a skateboard he crashed into some bushes. Now he's introduced to audiences as a "brand."

ANAHEIM, Calif.-A powerful idea can overcome anything, according to one expert. Yet sadly, in most organizations, including credit unions, those ideas lie dormant and undiscovered.

ANAHEIM, Calif.-For Land's End, respected for its customer service, it all begins by "thinking about the person on the other end of our decisions."

ANAHEIM, Calif.-At the age of 23, Nancy Lublin came home one day to find in the mail an envelope. Inside it was a check for $5,000 representing an inheritance from a grandfather.

ANAHEIM, Calif.-What is the personality of your CU? It's not a question to be lightly regarded, according to Susan Packard, the co-founder and former COO of HGTV, who offered CU leaders several different views on what it means to build a brand.

ANAHEIM, Calif.-If you think you're acting your age by simply not tweeting or engaging in other media, what you're really acting like is a poor leader, according to several people.

JOPLIN, Mo.-The twisters that leveled much of this city last week cut a path of destruction wide and long. But how deeply the deadly storm affected the townspeople can't be captured in headlines and photos.