MAY

CHESTERFIELD, Mo. - As credit unions race to expand their branch networks, they need to beware of cannibalizing their existing branches and even undermining their own brand.

LAS VEGAS - There are indirect members and there are credit union branches, and often the twain never do meet.

2 CUs Establish Relief Funds

MARIETTA, Ga. - Why is branching still king? Because not only are branches a primary way members measure convenience, but they should also be one of your best marketing tools.

MILWAUKEE, Wis. - When it comes time to decide between building new or working with you have, return on investment (ROI) is a big part of the equation-but there are some hidden things that can factor into the equation as well.

WICHITA, Kan. - Mid American CU was still trying to find its Greensburg branch employees and assess damage to that facility after a tornado essentially wiped the small town off the map last week.

MADISON, Wis. - CUES said it has entered into a partnership with Houston-based Strunk & Associates to offer a premium checking product to promote membership growth. Called "Reward Checking" and built on a platform provided by BancVue, the product "delivers a high interest rate checking account to credit union members in exchange for their use of the institution's online services and products," CUES said.

LOUISVILLE, Ky. - Payment Alliance International, a provider of ATM and transaction services, announced it has agreed to acquire control over 8,500 ATMs from NetBank Payment Systems, creating one of the nation's largest ATM networks.

MARIETTA, Ga. - Why is branching still king? Because not only are branches a primary way members measure convenience, but they should also be one of your best marketing tools.

WASHINGTON - The Federal Housing Finance Board last week approved a new program by the FHLB Atlanta which will direct credit union and bank members to a conduit to sell their loan on the secondary market. The Global Mortgage Alliance Program will not buy the loans themselves, like the FHLBs' Mortgage Partnership Finance program.

SUITLAND, Md. - During her three-and-a-half years as an NCUA board member, Debbie Matz was known for her focus on membership growth, especially at smaller credit unions. Today, she is working at Andrews FCU, here, and says she has a new perspective on the challenges credit unions face in member retention.

MADISON, Wis. - Two new white papers are available from the CUNA Councils. "Partnerships Power Business Lending" from the CUNA Lending Council discusses the competitive advantages that credit unions have with localized decision making based on the best interests of the community as well as local partnerships. The paper then distinguishes between a number of internal and external partners and provides demographics and advice on cultivating relationships for each of these groups.

WESTBROOK,Maine - Volunteers from Maine's credit unions donated nearly 20,000 hours of their time to various causes during 2006, according to the Maine league. The MCUL's five-year-old volunteer program, called Credit Unions Share for ME, documented 19,492.75 hours volunteered by credit union staff and directors last year. It calculated that based on figures from the Points of Light Foundation, which calculates the value of one hour volunteered at $18.77, the value of the time volunteered by Maine's credit unions equaled $366,015 in 2006.

MECHANICSBURG, Penn. - Members 1st Federal Credit Union was recently named Lender of the Year by SunTrust Mortgage, Inc.

With declining net interest margins, rising operating expenses and unprecedented merger and acquisition activity, credit unions face a challenging landscape to remain competitive.

NEW ORLEANS - The U.S. Attorney's office reported that Liberty Bank and Trust Co. has agreed to pay NCUA $1 million to resolve a long dispute over dividends the bank agreed to pay when the credit union regulator sold it part of a failing credit union. Upon closing Corpus Christi FCU in 1992, NCUA entered into a purchase and assumption agreement in which the agency agreed to invest $2.3 million in Liberty Bank in exchange for 2.3 million shares of Class A Preferred Stock.

Throughout 2007, the Credit Union Journal, in conjunction with ENCORE Card Services, are profiling the credit unions of each U.S. state and D.C. Rather than appear in alphabetical order, the states are being featured in the order they became states. For info: visit www.encore-ecs.coop.

PHOENIX, Ariz. - Desert Schools Federal Credit Union unveiled a new creative campaign designed to promote its auto loan programs; specifically Member Value Pricing and Dealer Direct.

BATON ROUGE, La. - Campus Federal Credit Union said it is rolling out a one-card program with Louisiana State University to provide IDs that work as the credit union's debit cards.