ALEXANDRIA, Va. — Approximately 45% of federally insured credit unions would have to develop extensive interest rate risk management policies that include extensive use of risk measurement systems and internal controls, according to a rule issued by the NCUA on Thursday.

Those credit unions covered by the rule would have to: Adopt an interest-rate risk policy; have a plan for the policy to be implemented by the institution's management and overseen by the board; put in place risk measurement systems to assess the sensitivity of earnings and/or asset and liability values to interest rate risk; adopt internal controls to monitor adherence to interest rate risks; and make decisions that are "informed and guided by interest rate risk measures.''

The rule applies to all FICUs with assets of more than $50 million. Those institutions with assets of between $10 million and $50 million must comply if the total of first mortgage loans they hold combined with total investments with maturities greater than five years is greater than 100% of their net worth.