Commentary

After reading Mike Welch's column in the Sept. 19 issue of Credit Union Times, "There are different ways to define membership," it got me to thinking about what it is that really matters about the work we do at CUNA and the Leagues. In particular, I was affected by the...

Five years ago, credit unions generally assumed a reactive posture toward public policy: we were consumed with business as usual, and engaged our regulators and elected officials only when proposed new laws and rules prevented us from serving our members well. The challenge of addressing and overcoming these obstacles was...

Melissa Member enters your credit union and asks Stella Teller for help, after bouncing seven checks at a fee of $20 each. (Her husband inadvertently deposited his paycheck in his own account, instead of their joint account.) What's the right response? a)"I'll transfer the funds to the right account, but...

Until just the last few years ago, credit unions have seemed immune to fraud losses while other financial institutions have been hit hard. With banks taking a more aggressive posture against fraud and credit unions allowing for more competitive account opening criteria, fraud operators have taken notice. And fraud losses...

WASHINGTON-President George W. Bush issued a new Executive Order aimed at freezing the assets of a number of known terrorists. Financial institutions have been directed to block the assets of those on Treasury's `Specially Designated Nationals' (SDN) list compiled by the Office of Foreign Asset Control (OFAC) and immediately contact...

In recent articles in Credit Union Times and other publications, it seems that some state-chartered, federal-insured credit unions have begun a public campaign to call for an end to, or at least a reduction to a de minimis level of, the Overhead Transfer which helps balance the funding of the...

The events of Tuesday, Sept. 11, 2001, shook our nation to its very core, challenging us to reach within and examine what it is we truly believe, what is truly important to us. While the credit union community was blessed, particularly in comparison with other sectors of the financial services...

In today's fast-paced society, writing a check, or standing behind someone who is, has become a frustrating and time-consuming task. More than ever, consumers are turning to debit cards for a wide variety of goods and services that have traditionally been purchased with checks or cash. In fact, debit card...