Credit unions that want to be considered as potential merger and purchase and assumption partners will be able to sign up for a registry that the NCUA is developing, NCUA Chairman Debbie Matz announced.
Writing in a letter this week, Matz said uch a registry will "improve the efficiency of identifying potential credit union partners and provide greater opportunity for more credit unions to be involved.".
Both CUNA and NAFCU had urged the agency to clarify its procedures in this area and make more credit unions aware of the criteria.
Matz wrote that the registry will let credit unions identify the parameters in which they want to be considered, such as asset size range, geographic limitations, field of membership, and minimum net worth levels.
She added that the criteria that the NCUA will use to pick the merger partner include: The impact on the credit union's safety and soundness; whether it is a good fit in terms of membership; whether the management operations can be integrated; can the credit union provide the same level of services to members as the failing one did; additional offerings by the bidding credit union such as a promise to keep certain locations, products and employees.
Matz noted that while the agency tries to contact as many credit unions as possible to ensure that the bidding process is competitive, there is no set number of candidates the NCUA must contact. She noted that there are "practical limits,'' on the number of institutions on which the agency can conduct due diligence.
Currently, each of the agency's regional offices maintains a manual list of interested potential merger and purchase and assumption partners. The letter is available here.
