Tax

The National Association of Federally-Insured Credit Unions and the Credit Union National Association sent a joint letter to Sen. Orrin Hatch on Wednesday defending the credit union charter and its tax status.

As U.S. banks were tallying up the billions of dollars in extra profits they'll reap from the sweeping tax cuts signed into law by President Donald Trump, they were quietly delivering unwelcome news to local governments: The interest rates on their loans were about to go up.

Tax reform caused Fannie Mae to burn through retained earnings that had been approved just two months ago and to post a fourth-quarter loss. CEO Timothy Mayopoulos argued it was a one-time event that overshadowed strong fundamentals.

It’s too soon to gauge the true impact of recent tax cuts on loan demand, but anecdotes from bankers suggest that, after months of stagnation, pipelines are filling up again.

Several banks suffered fourth-quarter hits when they reduced the value of certain energy investments. Still, renewable energy could remain a viable business thanks to other benefits embedded in the tax law.

Profits fell 42% at the Birmingham, Ala., bank because of a $121 million tax charge in the fourth quarter, but net interest income and noninterest income each rose 14%, softening the blow of the one-time tax hit.

Credit union groups were scrambling Wednesday to respond to a letter from Senate Finance Committee Chairman Orrin Hatch questioning whether the industry had outgrown its income-tax exemption.

In the wake of President Trump’s tax cut, banks would be wise to take the time to explore investment opportunities before returning increased profits to shareholders.

Swelling capital levels, tax cuts and changing attitudes about post-crisis regulation could encourage bigger banks to issue the one-time payouts to reward shareholders and better manage their returns.

The company, which has been actively curbing growth to avoid becoming a systemically important financial institution, reported lower loan balances and reduced fee income after exiting the residential wholesale mortgage business.