Credit Union Times Magazine October 26, 2011

Occupy Protests Rouse Small Business Owners

By Michelle A. Samaad

With the Occupy Wall Street movement recently crossing the one month mark, it remains to be seen if any of the protestors’ list of frustrations will be addressed and acted on.

UW Credit Union Mortgages Win Over Madison

By David Morrison

For what may be the first time ever, a credit union has become the biggest source of housing finance for a major metropolitan area in the U.S.

Fenton: Keep 30-Year Mortgage an Option

By Claude R. Marx

Calling it a net plus for the consumers and the housing market, Affinity FCU President/CEO John Fenton urged lawmakers to ensure that any changes in the housing finance system don’t jeopardize the existence of the 30-year mortgage.

MBL: The Next Political Round

By Claude R. Marx

Now comes the hard part. As tumultuous as the House subcommittee hearing on raising the cap on member business lending was, the really difficult battle will take place in the months ahead.

Pen Air and Navy Federal Finance Florida Hotel

By David Morrison

Commercial loans from two credit unions will provide the financing for the construction of a new hotel development that will eventually employ hundreds of residents of Pensacola, Fla., according to one of the credit unions that made the loans.

Used Car Loans Remain Brightest Star in Credit Union Portfolios

By Michelle A. Samaad

It’s no surprise that lending has been in the doldrums for many CUs the past few years but there could be an unexpected jolt triggered by fervor surrounding Bank Transfer Day Nov. 5.

Visa, MasterCard Face Another Anti-Trust Suit

By David Morrison

The National ATM Council and assorted independent ATM deployers have filed an anti-trust suit against Visa and MasterCard.

Rudy Pereira Named CEO of Royal CU

By Marc Rapport

Veteran credit union technologist and operations chief Rudy Pereira said he’s moving from one good place to another.

Bank-CU Peace Breaks Out on Online Network

By Natasha Chilingerian

Picture an online community where credit unions and banks peacefully coexist. Users from each type of institution can log in and share useful banking-related information, such as written policies and training materials, which other users download and review completely free of charge.

Rep. Tim Scott Brings CU Lessons to Capitol Hill

By Claude R. Marx

When Rep. Tim Scott (R-S.C.) was a board member at Heritage Trust FCU, he and his colleagues were focused on expanding the reach of the credit union and seeing how it could best serve its members.

Brian Branch Settles In at WOCCU

By Myriam DiGiovanni

As the new president/CEO of the World Council of Credit Unions Brian Branch has hit the ground running since stepping into the role following Pete Crear’s retirement.

SBA Sees Drop in Lending

By Michelle A. Samaad

The sweet spots nestled in some credit union business lending portfolios may be turning sour.

Building Member Loyalty by Any Means Necessary

By Natasha Chilingerian

There are lots of ways for credit unions to go about improving member experiences, growing member referrals and increasing their average number of products per member.

Mentorships Key to Retaining Gen Y Staffers

By Myriam DiGiovanni

Credit union mentor programs are demonstrating their value in developing the next generation of leaders.

Mobile Banking Changes Fuzzy Within FFIEC’s New Rules

By Robert McGarvey

Some may call it a convergence of three game-changing forces that are rewriting financial institution security at warp speed.

Javelin Findings Suggest Online Banking Saturation

By Natasha Chilingerian

If a new report is any indication, online banking adoption appears to have reached its limit.

Prep for Various Aspects of Bank Transfer Day

By Sarah Snell Cooke

Nov. 5 has been proclaimed Bank Transfer Day. This public groundswell against Bank of America’s $5 debit fee is a true national movement that aligns well with the credit union mission and credit unions need to hitch themselves to that wagon. Is your credit union prepared?

Letter: Fryzel Wants to See the Loans

The recent public exchange between the Wisconsin Bankers Association and the Wisconsin Credit Union League over member business lending sounds a lot like what has been going on in our nation’s capital for months. A stalemate between two parties who argue they can do it better, yet no one gets...

Guest Opinion: Mistakes in Global Cash Flow Analysis

By Brad Schaefer

As global cash flow has become more of a necessity than an option, the majority of financial institutions are now performing some type of combined ratio analysis. The issue lies in the fact that there are several methods of global cash flow analysis being used. And some lead to erroneous...

Guest Opinion: The Next Generation of Banking

By Dan Chaney

Transformations in the mobile banking arena will be a hot topic among credit unions in 2012. According to Morgan Stanley, within five years, the number of mobile Internet users will surpass the number of desktop Internet users.

WOCCU Official Takes Polish Senate Seat

By Michelle A. Samaad

Grzegorz Bierecki, president/CEO of the National Association of Cooperative Savings & Credit Unions, Poland's credit union trade association and a member of World Council of Credit Unions can add parliament member to his growing list of accomplishments.

Kellogg CU Marks 70th Anniversary

Kellogg Community Federal Credit Union of Battle Creek, Mich., spent the month of October celebrating its 70th anniversary. “70 Years of Smiles” was the theme developed to promote this milestone to members as well as nonmembers. KCFCU has been drawing winners for $70 Target gift cards, and one lucky...

Card Pick Site Tops 1,000

By David Morrison

More than 1,000 credit unions now have their credit card offerings listed on CreditCardConnection.org, a website dedicated to helping consumers find credit union-issued cards.

PayPal Links Up With NCR

By David Morrison

PayPal has announced a deal with ATM manufacturer NCR that moves it more deeply into the payments arena. The predominantly online and mobile phone based payments company announced a suite of services aimed at the retail sector last month.

Prices Drive Card Spending

By David Morrison

Consumers spent more on their credit and debit cards in September 2011 than they did in the same month last year, according to card processor First Data. But the firm credited inflated prices for the increase rather than an increase in purchases.

Wisconsin Credit Unions Merge

By Jim Rubenstein

First Community Credit Union, Beloit, Wis., announced that the members of Rock County Employees Credit Union, Janesville, Wis., have voted to merge their credit union into First Community Credit Union.

Coventry CU in Rhode Island Names CEO

By Myriam DiGiovanni

David Root, owner of Root and Associates, has been named chief executive officer of Coventry Credit Union, Coventry, R.I. Root, at CPA, has been Coventry Credit Union’s independent auditor for the past 20 years. He replace

N.J. CU Members Save Big

By Myriam DiGiovanni

United Teletech Financial has scored well above its goal to save members $1 million. The credit union’s campaign, the “Million Dollar Community Challenge,” started at the beginning of the summer and challenged members to unite to save a million dollars in interest. The goal was surpassed as members saved more...

Public Service Credit Union Expands

Public Service Credit Union, Denver, recently announced that residents of Adams and Weld counties are now eligible to join PSCU. Building on an existing Larimer County community charter, the addition of these two community charters opens up membership to more than 900,000 people.

Advantis CU Aids Charities

By Myriam DiGiovanni

As nonprofits continue to struggle, Advantis Credit Union has figured out a way to make a real difference in the communities it serves with GROW: the Advantis Community Fund.

CU*Answers and Xtend Add Owners

By Marc Rapport

Four more credit unions have become owners of Grand Rapids, Mich.-based core processor CU*Answers and affiliated CUSO Xtend Inc.

ACI Buys S1 Corp.

By Marc Rapport

After rejecting its initial bid this summer, S1 Corp. has agreed to be acquired by ACI Worldwide Inc., the electronic payments and online banking companies said.

Symitar Signs 37 CUs

By Marc Rapport

Thirty-seven credit unions became new users of Symitar core processing platforms in the past year, according to Jack Henry & Associates Inc.

Prepaid Card Aim at Hispanics Unveiled

By Marc Rapport

Coopera and The Members Group are now offering a prepaid card created specifically for underbanked Hispanics.

NEFCU Chooses Cybercrime Software

By Marc Rapport

The 159,000 members of the $1.7 billion NEFCU in Westbury, N.Y., can now choose to protect their online banking presence with the use of Trusteer Rapport cybercrime prevention software, the company and credit union said.

Passageways Signs Up Two

By Marc Rapport

Portal provider Passageways LLC said a pair of Michigan credit unions has become the 250th and 251st users of portal solutions from Passageways LLC, the Indiana-based CUSO said.