Government Is the No. 1 Reason for Consolidation

ORLANDO, Fla. — Recently retired Mountain America CU President/CEO Gordon Dames was able to make some bold statements at the CU Business Practices Conference hosted Dec. 4-5 by Credit Union Times and Summit Business Media.Regarding the decline in the number of credit unions, Dames said, “The top reason, I think, is regulation.” He specifically noted the new Red Flags rules as an “indictment on our education system” for credit unions to have to educate members on identity theft. Additionally, the former NCUA examiner said that the move to a risk-based examination has made the process a lot more subjective rather than basing it in law, regulation and sound business practice.Second-tier reasons for industry consolidation have been the cost of technology, delivery systems and staffing.Finally, Dames added, credit unions just don’t have the scale. “Size is necessary for survival,” he said.