NAFCU Touts CUs as Financial Bright Spot to Fed

WASHINGTON — Credit unions are one of the few relative bright spots in an otherwise dismal financial landscape, but they could use some help, too.That was the message NAFCU’s board conveyed to Federal Reserve Vice Chairman Donald Kohn during the association’s annual meeting with the board last week.“He appreciated knowing that for the most we don’t do exotic or other subprime loans,” NAFCU Chief Economist and Director of Research Tun Wai said of Kohn.Wai described Kohn as “very engaged” during the meeting and quite familiar with the work of credit unions. Wai said in previous sessions, some board members were rather quiet while others asked a lot of questions and Kohn was in between.In a written report that the board gave Kohn, NAFCU said it was “concerned about the significant compliance challenges imposed by the litany of regulatory amendments that are made annually.”The board reiterated concerns about changes that the Fed is considering making to credit card rules. Specifically, NAFCU fears that some of the changes intended to correct “unfair and deceptive practices” could hurt federal credit unions by limiting their ability to manage risk and offer credit to consumers in underserved areas.–[email protected]