DENVER – The thousands of visitors, delegates, politicians and press in town this week for the Democratic National Convention are being greeted by a banner hanging from the Credit Union Associations of Colorado and Wyoming’s new building welcoming them to town.

ARLINGTON, Va. – NAFCU is expressing concern NCUA may be preparing to place what it says are unnecessary restrictions on credit unions’ member business loans.

RALEIGH, N.C. – Truliant Federal Credit Union has launched a new program that provides funding to local non-profits.

A proposed merger between Visterra Credit Union in Moreno Valley, Calif., and the Credit Union of Southern California in Brea has been called off.

With this 2009 Credit Union Journal Marketplace Directory, we kick off the celebration commemorating the 100th anniversary of credit unions in the United States. As this comprehensive overview of the credit union community and the vendors serving it makes clear, credit unions have come a long way since November of 1908 when St. Mary’s Bank in Manchester, N.H. took in its first members.

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WEST PALM BEACH, Fla. – Credit unions now have an effective means of responding to member concerns over the safety of their savings.

TOPEKA, Kan. – The $752-million Columbian Bank and Trust Co. here has been shuttered by the FDIC, which placed it into receivership.

MORENO VALLEY, Calif. – A proposed merger between Visterra Credit Union and Brea, Calif.-based Credit Union of California is being called off.

HARRISBURG, Penn. – Bankers in Pennsylvania have filed a response in Federal District Court to a ruling on field of membership involving three credit unions in the state.

TULSA, Okla. – A robber exiting a Credit Union Service Center here fired a shot as he was leaving.

PASADENA, Calif. – Wescom Credit Union said its recent closure of 11 branches likely will result in approximately 80 positions being eliminated.

WASHINGTON – The selection of Sen. Joe Biden (D-Del.) by Sen. Barack Obama as his running mate in the race for the presidency could have implications for credit unions and other financial institutions should Obama defeat Sen. John McCain in the race.

DENVER – The nation’s credit unions will be looking to make themselves heard above the din here this week when the Democratic National Convention is held.

DUBLIN, Ohio–Several credit unions in Ohio have been cautioning members not to respond to widespread phishing and vishing fraud occurring in the state. The Ohio CU League reported that thousands of Ohioans have been receiving messages via text, email, and voicemail stating their services were suspended, followed by a phone number to call. Members are then prompted to enter credit and debit card information. The league reported that there have been five unique phishing scams purporting to be from credit unions in the past two days. The FBI is uring consumers to report information at www.ic3.gov for investigation.

HOUSTON — Surcharge-free ATM access is gaining in popularity among debit card issuers, according to the 2008 Debit Issuer Study, commissioned by PULSE.

SACRAMENTO, Calif.–California attorney general, Edmund G. Brown, is considering a request made by former IndyMac employees to investigate whether a letter from New York Senator Charles Schumer helped lead to the bank's collapse. Schumer had sent the letter to regulatory authorities and questioned the ability of IndyMac Bancorp to survive.

PETERBOROUGH, N.H.–Just five credit unions sold their card portfolios during the second quarter, a marked decline in such sales by CUs.

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WASHINGTON–The FDIC has introduced a plan that would modify tens of thousands of loans at IndyMac Federal Bank. The goal is to the failed thrift's sale value and spurring more modifications across the industry. The FDIC has long advocated large-scale modifications to avoid foreclosures and said it is offering modified loans for 4,000 borrowers this week, part of an initial phase to target 25,000 troubled IndyMac borrowers for possible loan changes.