Credit Union Times Magazine January-27, 2010

Law Firms Urge Credit Unions to Reject Heartland Breach Settlement

By David Morrison

Three law firms representing credit unions and other card issuers with litigation pending against Heartland Payment Systems are urging card issuers to reconsider signing on to the offer.

Corporate Town Halls Coach Members on Reg Comments

By Heather Anderson

Despite the NCUA-directed cancellation of Western Corporate Federal Credit Union's town hall meetings,

Sophisticated Gas Pump Skimming Thieves Are Filling Up Their Wallets

By David Morrison

Don't look now, but criminals are moving beyond the ATM and unwary retailer when trying to steal your members' card numbers and raid their accounts.

After Confirming Staff Safety, WOCCU Joins Haiti Quake Relief Effort

By Heather Anderson

After confirming that all 16 of its project staff members working on-site in Haiti were safe and uninjured after the earthquake rocked the island Jan. 12,

CDCUs Hope Guidance Signals

By David Morrison

unions hope NCUA's recent guidance to examiners about low-income services and CDCU operations and issues will help them get some of the respect from the agency that many have long felt they are due.

Future of MBL Hike and Consumer Protection Agency Is Unclear

By Claude R. Marx

Credit unions are hoping that President Obama's latest endorsement of a new agency to regulate consumer products won't be enough to push it through the Senate

Consumers Focus on Debt

Consumers are choosing decreasing debt over putting away savings as their No. 1 priority for the new year, according to an online poll by the National Foundation for Credit Counseling.

CU Man's Strength Pales Before

By Myriam DiGiovanni

Northeast Family Federal Credit Union has its own superhero. And a real flesh and blood hero. All within the same person.

Management Consultant Mediates Battle of the Sexes in the Workplace

By Claude R. Marx

Speak up, but don't go for on for too long. Whatever you do, don't get too emotional.

Hunt for Best Rates May Set the Stage for a New-Member Growth Repeat

By Michelle A. Samaad

If consumers continue looking outside of banks for the best rates on products like money market accounts, credit unions could gain another 1.7 million new members as they did last year.

Alabama Suit Settled

By Claude R. Marx

Alabama's top regulator and the former CEO and board of the failed $193 million Mutual Savings Credit Union of Birmingham have settled their legal dispute although the CU remains under state conservatorship.

Comments on Mortgage Purchasing and Clarification on Addresses Rule

By Claude R. Marx

Credit union representatives commented on a proposed rule on purchased mortgages and the Treasury has clarified it's address notification ruling.

CU Foundation Expands Its Scholarship Funding

It's been a challenging fiscal year for North Carolina public schools, but thanks to the State Employees' Credit Union Foundation, 2010 is looking a little less bleak for students.

Utah CU in Insurance Deal

Southwest Community Federal Credit Union has tossed its hat into the insurance arena.

CU Buys Historic Building

In Baton Rouge, La., Pelican State Credit Union is going green with the purchase of downtown's historic Piccadilly Building.

Planning New Leadership

According to the CUNA 2009-2010 CEO total compensation survey, 63% of credit unions with $100 million or more in assets have a succession plan in place that specifies how the CEO will be replaced.

Milwaukee CU Merged

The $34 million First Service Credit Union of Milwaukee has become the latest victim of last year's bankruptcy of Central States Mortgage Corp., the Wauwatosa, Wis.. CUSO that got into trouble over subprime paper.

Statistics Show Larger CUs Have an Advantage in Gaining Card-Carrying Members

By David Morrison

While there are always exceptions to the rule, statistics show that, in general, credit unions with more assets have a greater percentage of their members carrying their credit cards.

New Tool Should Help CUs Measure Card Fraud Risk

By David Morrison

CUNA Mutual Group has released a new online tool that should help credit unions better measure their risk of credit and debit card fraud.

'Trust' Brand Set for Playoff

By Jim Rubenstein

The New Jersey Credit Union League is counting on the run-up to the Feb. 7 Super Bowl in Miami as a useful branding vehicle to convey the league's "Banking You Can Trust" awareness message.

Five Ohio Credit Unions Launch Online Auto Shopping

By Marc Rapport

Five Ohio credit unions are now using a new service from Aimbridge Indirect Lending LLC and their state league to offer their members the convenience of online car shopping and financing through their credit unions' Web site.

CU On-Line Platform Upgrade

The 22 credit unions using Credit Union On-Line Inc. as its service bureau are now running on the latest version of Fiserv XP2 platform.

New York CUSO Offers Value-Added Credit Reporting

By Marc Rapport

A New York CUSO has launched a credit report service it said adds value to the report by matching the consumer with credit unions and community banks with the best available loan rates.

Cloud-Based Springboard

Wesabe is now offering a cloud-based version of its Springboard personal finance management platform.

CARD Act Holds Promise For CUs, Filene Paper Suggests

By David Morrison

Credit union credit card programs stand a very good chance of benefiting under the CARD Act of 2009 if they maintain their traditional consumer focus and conservative underwriting,

Credit Union Credit Card Programs Are the Little Engine That Could

nce upon a time in the not so distant past, I recall credit unions across the nation pondering the fates of their credit card programs. Keep?

Letting Freedom Ring Needs Nurturing at Home and Abroad

By Sarah Snell Cooke

All labor that uplifts humanity has dignity and importance and should be undertaken with painstaking excellence."

Corporate Legacy Assets Hang Over the Industry

he NCUA Board's proposed corporate credit union regulations are most notable for what they do not do.

Correction

The headline on a brief article in the Jan. 20 issue misstated Rich Helber's new position. He was named CEO of Tropical Financial Credit Union.

ONLINE VOTING POLL UPDATE -- www.cutimes.com

The latest results from the Credit Union Times online voting poll showed that while there are many credit unions that are working to attract Gen Y members, there are some credit union's that aren't.