BOSTON – The Federal Home Loan Bank of Boston warned yesterday that it may need to take additional write-downs on certain mortgage-backed securities.

WASHINGTON – CUNA has issued a statement that its decision to reconsider a lawsuit against NCUA and its call for congressional hearings on the conservatorships of U.S. Central FCU and WesCorp FCU were not the result of any discussion held with members of Congress, including Rep. Paul Kanjorski, as Credit Union Journal had asserted at cujournal.com. Instead, CUNA said that its decision not to pursue litigation at this time was because its own "legal research has determined that we have other legal remedies available to us that are likely to be fruitful if we decide to go to court."

WASHINGTON - CUNA said yesterday that compensation disclosures provided to the credit union trade press for its president and CEO Dan Mica were incomplete and should have listed another $197,000 Mica was paid by CUNA affiliate CUNA Strategic Services in 2007, boosting Mica’s 2007 pay to almost $1.2 million.

TUKWILA, Wash. – Prime Alliance Solutions Inc. and CUDL said yesterday they have cancelled their 2009 'Driving Home' lending Symposium, and plan to hold it instead in May 2010.

FORT WAYNE, Ind. – Two men face federal charges accusing them of trying to burn down a Three Rivers FCU branch in March 2007.

CEDAR RAPIDS, Iowa – The closure of the Sealed Air Cryovac plant here this fall has forced the plant’s tiny credit union, Cryovac Employees CU, to merge into the much larger Dupaco Community CU, in nearby Dubuque.

LENEXA, Kan. – A local man was charged yesterday with robbing the Credit Union of Johnson County Saturday morning and shooting an elderly witness to the heist in the head as he made his getaway.

WASHINGTON – The Senate Banking Committee endorsed a measure yesterday that would provide as much as $24 billion in funding for the National CU Share Insurance Fund on an emergency basis, moving ahead with help for NCUA’s corporate credit union bailout.

NORWALK, Conn. – NCUA and the banking regulators told the Financial Accounting Standards Board Friday they support proposed changes to mark-to-market accounting rules that would allow entities to separate expected losses from market-value losses on their financial reports, but only for the just completed quarter and not retroactively, as many credit unions are requesting.

WASHINGTON – The Senate Banking Committee this morning endorsed a bill which would vastly expand the borrowing capacity of NCUA and allow the agency to stretch out the recapitalization of the National CU Share Insurance Fund to as long as five years in order to help pay the growing costs of the corporate credit union bailout.

SANTA BARBARA, Calif. – The FBI is hunting for a tattooed robber who has hit at least 15 institutions across California, the last two being the Golden 1 CU and Wescom Central CU.

CINCINNATI – Fifth Third Bancorp announced yesterday it has agreed to seel a 51% stake in its Fifth Third Processing unit, popular with credit unions, to private equity fund Advent International Inc., for $561 million.

HOPKINS, Minn. – Retail Employees CU announced yesterday it has changed its name to SharePoint CU.

PEARL RIVER, N.Y. – Palisades FCU said yesterday it has agreed to move the processing of its $5 million cards portfolio to TNB Card Services.

NOVI, Mich. – Telcom CU has launched a new program for young members called Telcom FU$E, which includes a reward savings account, checking account, debit card, and Visa credit card for members from 16 to 23 years old, as well as a FU$E scholarship program for high school seniors.

CHELSEA, Mass. – Metro CU said it has joined the state’s ‘Home for the Brave’ program which is providing discounted mortgages to veterans.

WESTBURY, N.Y. – Three credit unions serving the expansive 15 hospitals affiliated with the North Shore Jewish Health System are negotiating a rare three-way combination.

WASHINGTON – CUNA executives thought better yesterday of going to war with NCUA over last week’s takeovers of U.S. Central FCU and WesCorp FCU, and instead will work with the federal agency to try to mitigate the $5.9-billion cost of the corporate bailout.

SEATTLE – The Federal Home Loan Bank of Seattle reported yesterday that a huge $304.2-million other-than-temporary impairment charge on its private-label mortgage backed securities caused it to book a loss of $241.1 million for its fourth quarter.

NORWALK, Conn. – Representatives of the corporate credit union system, buried under billions of dollars of mark-to-market losses, are lobbying the Financial Accounting Standards Board to amend the rules in short time so they can shed some of these losses.