RARITAN, N.J. - A number of credit unions have received notice that Bank of America is shutting down accounts the CUs had come to rely on as an important source of liquidity.

WASHINGTON - The merger of two avowed credit union enemies moved forward last week when board of America's Community Bankers voted unanimously to approve a combination with the American Bankers Association.

LAS VEGAS - The Federal Reserve's Sept. 18 decision to cut the Federal Funds rate by 50 basis points was announced during WesCorp's Credit Union Outlook conference here. The Credit Union Journal asked attendees if they were surprised by the magnitude of the rate cut, and what it will mean to their CU.

Comment

FORT WORTH, Texas - OmniAmerican Bank, a credit union-turned-bank, said last week it has laid off 35 of its 410 employees, or 8% of its workforce, to right itself after incurring losses following its conversion. Along with positions lost through attrition, the former credit union has cut its workforce by 12.5% in recent months after losing about $1 million last year following its controversial charter switch.

LAS VEGAS - The current mortgage situation is allowing credit unions to come out of hiding and let people know they are still around, and perhaps more importantly, still lending.

POINT PLEASANT BEACH, N.J. - Frank D'Alessandro, the southwest Florida developer who partnered with three now-failed credit unions in a multi-billion dollar land speculation was found floating in the ocean last week, the victim of an apparent accidental drowning.

LAS VEGAS - The Federal Reserve's decision to cut the Federal Funds rate by 50 basis points was greeted with enthusiasm at WesCorp's Credit Union Outlook conference here last Tuesday.

LAS VEGAS - Foreclosures are still climbing in the United States with August filings double from the previous year, according to reports published by the Associated Press.

SEATTLE - The PBS series BizKid$ has been pushed back 90 days to air in January 2008 so participating television stations can show the 23 episodes as one season. The show's producers and underwriters are also developing teaching aids for American classrooms to coincide with the topic of each episode.

BUENA PARK, Calif. - All credit union CEOs expect their institution's assets to grow, but none expect a nearly 50% jump from one reporting period to the next.

Credit Union Journal Subscribers can access all content from the print edition every Monday simultaneously with its publication at www.cujournal.com. Additional resources include:

In coverage of the problems in the subprime mortgage market, the San Jose Mercury News reported that credit unions are not likely to be dragged down by those problems, noting, "credit unions...hold their own pool of cash and don't rely on Wall Street." The story quoted Ken Burns, president and CEO of Technology CU, who explained the credit union's mortgage program and options, including conventional rates on loans up to $620,000.

WASHINGTON - Ten community development credit unions and support organizations will share $5.3 million in federal funding from the Community Development Financial Institutions program, helping to rebuild capital and expand services, the CDFI Fund announced.

SAN DIMAS, Calif. - Financial Service Centers Cooperative introduced its long-awaited connection to 7-Eleven stores last week, providing the nation's CUs with shared branching in 2,000 convenience stores around the country.

DUBUQUE, Iowa - Iowa credit union veteran Tom Sarvis retired May 31 from DuTrac Community Credit Union here after 23 years of service. During his tenure as DuTrac's president/CEO, a position assumed June 1 by Andrew Hawkinson, former president/CEO of Rocky Mountain Credit Union in Helena, Mont., Sarvis spearheaded many changes for the CU, chartered in 1946 to serve the Dubuque Tractor Works division of John Deere Corp. Those changes parallel those experienced by the industry, said the Deep River, Iowa native.

I read with great interest Frank J. Diekmann's editorial in the Credit Union Journal (CU Journal, Sept. 3) about how some current events are eerily similar to the S&L crisis of the 80's. Bear with me for some quick thoughts and observations. I lived and somehow survived that era to be reborn in 1998 as a credit union CEO. I can tell you that there was a lot of wheeling and dealing that caused the problem but there was also "regulatory" help along the way.

On Sept. 10, in the Credit Union Journal's daily news, there was a short article titled "Ensweiler Calls for National Cooperation to Build CU Membership." Dick Ensweiler is absolutely right. In fact this past spring I was contracted by CUNA to write the opening portion of a white paper on the merits of a credit union national branding effort. If you have an opportunity to read the white paper you will see that I believe in a national credit union brand. But it will only bring value to the industry if individual credit unions understand how to build on the CUNA national branding effort with their own local marketing and advertising.

About a year ago I created a marketing term: Brand Pimp. A Brand Pimp is defined as a person, business and/or organization that will ruin an established brand by cheapening it just to make a buck.

Banks generate precious revenues by utilizing call centers that are able to help customers with questions and concerns, while functioning as a means to market and cross-sell. Unfortunately, credit unions tend to lack these call centers due to their smaller sizes, limiting them to websites and face-to-face interaction as a means of member contact.