Banking Wire articles from March 2004

Banking Wire archives from March 2004

NCUA Unanimously Approves CU Conversion Amendment.
March 1, 2004... Amidst a growing furor over credit union conversions, the NCUA board last week unanimously approved a new rule requiring credit unions converting to mutual savings banks to provide their members with expanded disclosures, including the...

State Houses See Budget Help: Tax Threat To CUs Not Just A Federal Issue Anymore.
March 1, 2004... For years credit unions have marched on Washington as part of CUNA's GAC, always stressing the reasons for the tax exemption. But the big threats now are in places such as Birmingham and Albuquerque and Salt Lake City, where state legislatures...

Not Not-For-Profit: Filings Show Just How Much CEOs, Directors of Former CUs Can Make From Conversions.
March 1, 2004... There's gold in credit union conversions-at least after the subsequent sale of the institution in an initial public stock offering. That's what managers and directors have learned at at least seven credit unions that have made the switch...

NCUF Rolls Out National Savings Program.
March 1, 2004... The National Credit Union Foundation has joined with the Consumer Federation of America (CFA) to launch of a new campaign called "America Saves Through Credit Unions." CUNA is also involved. The program being rolled out in conjunction with...

Va. Supreme Court Upholds FOM.
March 1, 2004... In what makes for lightning speed in the world of plodding legal proceedings, the Virginia Supreme Court issued a ruling last week validating the state's community chartering rules just a month after hearing oral arguments in the case. The...

We Hold These Truths To Be Self-Evident.
March 1, 2004... CUNA has produced a 15-minute video on lobbying "do's and don'ts" that will be broadcast on the in-room TV networks that appear in the four major hotels housing participants attending its Governmental Affairs Conference this week. The...

Utah's CUs Led Way To Federals.
March 1, 2004... One of the biggest stories of 2003 was the rapid erosion of the Utah state credit union charter in the face of a banker-inspired tax initiative. After threatening to exit the state system if lawmakers persisted in paring back the state...

Colorado League Names Dill As New CEO.
March 1, 2004... The Colorado/Wyoming Credit Union League has named John C. Dill as its new president and CEO. Dill will assume the job in early March. New to credit unions, Dill was previously offering government affairs representation, community affairs...

ON DEADLINE.
March 1, 2004... Earl To Head CU For Kids At Children's Miracle Network SALT LAKE CITY-Children's Miracle Network (CMN) has hired former Utah League of CUs CEO Scott Earl to head up the Credit Unions for Kids program. "We are excited to have Scott on...

We Hold These Truths To Be Self-Evident. Sort Of.
March 1, 2004... The scene: A remote room deep beneath the U.S. capital dome, so secret even Dick Cheney doesn't know about it. On the walls: photos of Spiro Agnew, Elbridge Gerry and an automated hairspray spritzer. The characters: Several senior members...

Getting Inside THE NUMBERS: Analysis Examines Performance Of CU Business Lines, Projects What's Ahead.
March 2, 2004... As 2004 moves forward, credit unions should prepare to see increased volumes in non-real estate lending, while members stopping into make deposits should do so less often. But new lending business in some product lines, especially auto...

Two Other Views On THE NUMBERS.
March 2, 2004... More Good News For The Bottom Line MADISON, Wis.-"Good news for the bottom line" of credit unions continues, according to new analysis from CUNA's Economics and Statistics Department. CUNA said that member savings growth slowed...

Worth Noting.
March 2, 2004... Free Financial Check-Up Offered EWING, N.J.-To mark the addition of a new VP of investment services, Credit Union of New Jersey, through its Credit Union Investment Center, is offering a "3-in-1 Financial Checkup," which includes a...

More Than 600 FCUs Are Now Community Charters.
March 2, 2004... The 1998 CU Membership Access Act, better known as HR 1151, may have freed up credit unions to pursue select groups for membership, but the most popular method of FOM expansion since its passage has become the community charter. NCUA...

325 Mergers In 03; Most In Decade.
March 2, 2004... The urge to merge was hard to resist for credit unions last year. NCUA approved 325 credit union mergers in 2003, the most in a decade. While those mergers erased another 194 small credit unions under $5 million in assets from the map,...

Brand-New CU Charters.
March 2, 2004... New chartering activity ground to a virtual standstill, with only six new credit unions approved for federal charters last year, one of the lowest numbers since the inception of the Federal CU Act in 1934. There were also five new state...

Product & Service.
March 2, 2004... TNB Card Services Acquires Cards WAUSAU, Wis.-Cloverbelt Credit Union has sold its credit card portfolio to TNB Card Services, Dallas. The sale was facilitated by AssetExchange, Portland, Ore. The partnership includes an undisclosed...

Navy Fed To Sell Jumbos To Charlie Mac, But Retain Risk.
March 2, 2004... In a new effort to both aid liquidity and boost profitability on the sale of mortgage loans, Navy FCU was expected to ink a deal last week under which it will sell its jumbo mortgages to U.S. Central CU's Charlie Mac but retain the credit...

Liberty Gives $100K To CU Foundation.
March 2, 2004... For the second year in a row, Liberty Enterprises this week will present a $100,000 donation to the National Credit Union Foundation during the annual Herb Wegner Memorial Awards Dinner in Washington. The donation makes Liberty a corporate...

Study Finds No Advantage In Canadian EFT System.
March 2, 2004... The free-market-driven U. S. debit payments system, in which both consumers and merchants have choices in debit processing options, saved cardholders more than $4.3 billion in fees last year when compared to the system utilized in Canada,...

Providing Superior Member Value Seen As Big Challenge.
March 3, 2004... The overriding challenge to CUs this year? Providing superior member value, according to a presentation at the MyDAS Educational Conference here. Chip Filson, president of Callahan and Associates, Inc. told the more than 100 credit union...

Product & Service.
March 3, 2004... Coast Hills Selects Connections LOMPOC, Calif.-Coast Hills FCU has purchased Cardwell's Connections Online strategic plan implementation software. The web-based application connects employees of the credit union for the "purpose of...

CUs More Likely To Eat Health Care Costs.
March 3, 2004... Despite sharp rises in health care costs, credit unions are much less likely than all other employers to pass those rising costs onto their employees through their benefits package, according to a new survey from CUNA. Absorbing those...

Langley FCU Hits $1 Billion.
March 3, 2004... Langley FCU has become the latest to hit the $1 billion in assets threshold. That's up from just $76-million in assets in 1979, when Jean M. Yokum was named CEO. LFCU said that assets have grown an average of 9.36% each of the past five years,...

More Tidbits From The District.
March 3, 2004... In 1802, Congress granted the City of Washington its first municipal charter. Voters, defined as white males who paid taxes and have lived in the city for at least a year, received the right to elect a 12-member council. The mayor was appointed...

Calif. CU Offers Special Loan For Segways.
March 3, 2004... Segway Human Transporters have not yet lived up to their promise of revolutionizing travel, but Partners Federal Credit Union is trying to do its part to get the employees it serves at the Disneyland Resort to jump on the (two-wheeled)...

Booth Aimed To Raise Awareness Among Dealers.
March 3, 2004... More than 100 credit union executives gathered here as part of the throng of 30,000 on hand for the 2004 National Automobile Dealer Association (NADA) Convention and Exposition. The exhibit and events coordinated by Credit Union Direct Lending...

Product & Service.
March 3, 2004... Warren Rudman To Keynote Event ALBANY, N.Y.-Former Sen. Warren Rudman will keynote Empire Corporate FCU's Economic Forum/27th Annual Meeting on April 6. Rudman will address the topic, "From the Voting Booth to The Day After: What the 2004...

AHFCU Lifts $1 ATM Surcharge; Says Other Benefits Will Compensate.
March 3, 2004... American Heritage Federal Credit Union has lifted its $1 surcharge fee for both members and non-members who use any of its 22 machines in Philadelphia, Bucks and Montgomery counties. AHFCU President/CEO Bruce K. Foulke said the board...

Growing Gains: Cost Cutting, Product Pricing Help Fuel Growth.
March 3, 2004... Gung-ho doesn't begin to describe John Santarpia. Celebrating his first year as CEO of Community First Credit Union, the 41-year-old former real estate broker has already overseen: * A 33% increase in assets. * The purchase of...

Product & Service.
March 4, 2004... DEI To Build CU's 'Synergy Center' CINCINNATI-DEI has signed design/build contracts with a number of credit unions, including: Virginia-based Synergy One FCU for a 4,700-square-foot facility that will include a"Synergy Center" where...

Strategies For Battling Predatory Lending Posted On NCUA Site.
March 4, 2004... Credit unions seeking information on protecting members and potential members from being victimized by predatory lenders can now access innovative ideas on the subject at NCUA's website at www.ncua.gov. The material has been assembled by...

Redistricting Forcing Some Tough Decisions.
March 4, 2004... The credit union lobby may have thought the conflict over the decennial congressional redistricting, which forced them to choose between friends in several races, was over and done with after the 2002 mid-term elections. After some tough...

Minn. CUs Deal Their Own Hand.
March 4, 2004... The Minnesota Credit Union Network is distributing to the Minnesota Legislature and members of the local and national media decks of playing cards featuring the names and pictures of the 2004 Minnesota Legislators. The Network made four...

The Statehouse Report: How State Leagues, Associations Are Dealing With Misconceptions About Credit Unions Among Legislators.
March 4, 2004... While the attention of credit unions this week will be on Washington, D.C., where thousands have gathered for CUNA's annual Governmental Affairs Conference, The Credit Union Journal asked each of the state leagues to discuss the potential...

Alabama On High Alert This Session.
March 4, 2004... The 2004 legislative session began in Alabama on Feb. 3, and we are on high alert for the possibility of a tax threat, as the state battles with a budget deficit. Last year there were severe budget cuts, and this year's focus will be on new...

Bright Forecast Keeps Tax Issues At Bay.
March 4, 2004... Gov. Janet Napolitano and state lawmakers have announced no new taxes for this 2004 legislative session. The deficit has been reduced from a projected $1 billion to $500 million and they are betting on a healthy state economy. The governor has...

Special Session On School Funding A Concern.
March 4, 2004... Arkansas' general assembly meets once every two years. This is the off year. However, they are meeting in special session to deal with a Supreme Court decision regarding the inequity and unconstitutionality of the state's school funding...

Tax Threat Lessened But Not Gone For Good.
March 4, 2004... With the defeat last year of AB 1226, a banker-inspired bill that called for a study on imposing a "fee" on California's largest credit unions, the tax threat in California has lessened somewhat, but attempts by the banking industry to tax...

Project Zip Code Makes Big Impression.
March 4, 2004... With many states looking for new revenue sources, Colorado's legislature is no exception. The tax threat to Colorado credit unions could be rated moderate, as would the threat to other entities in the state. Colorado credit union leaders...

Delaware Monitors Activity In Other States.
March 5, 2004... Delaware is one of a handful of states with a modest budget surplus of $100 million this year. Our legislature is wrangling with the surplus and how to make the best use of it in an election year. Since Delaware does not have state-charter...

CUs Not Being Eyed To Balance Budget-Yet.
March 5, 2004... The Florida Credit Union League remains alert to the possibility of an attack on credit unions' tax-exempt status. Along with their stated intent to take the leadership role in the national effort to repeal our tax exemption, Florida's banking...

Hawaii Must Address Taxation County-By-County.
March 5, 2004... State-chartered credit unions in Hawaii are exempt from state franchise taxes and general excise tax (the equivalent of a state sales tax) on business purchases of personal property. Of the 97 credit unions domiciled in Hawaii, only three are...

Swift Financial Turn Around Keeps Exemption Safe.
March 5, 2004... In 2003, the state of Idaho experienced much of the same budget worries as many other states, although not to the same degree of severity. The 2003 Idaho legislature reacted, during the longest session in our history, by increasing the sales...

Regulatory Fees Also On The Rise For Ill. CUs.
March 5, 2004... The threat of credit union taxation in Illinois is driven primarily by two forces: the state's desire to reduce a multi-billion dollar budget deficit and the banking industry's efforts to limit competition. During the last budget cycle, credit...

Iowa's CUs Seek Rule Clarification.
March 5, 2004... Credit unions are asking the state legislature to clarify the parity provision in the state credit union statute purporting to put state charters here on equal footing with federal credit unions. The issue is probably more important here...

Vermont's CUs Prepare For Banks' Critical Testimony.
March 5, 2004... The credit union lobby is bracing for a legislative onslaught this week when representatives from the Vermont Bankers Association testify before the state legislature on a bill to reform the state's credit union statute. The bill would...

CUs Pay Same Taxes As Banks In Indiana.
March 5, 2004... State-chartered credit unions in Indiana have paid some form of state income tax from the very beginning. Since 1989, state-chartered credit unions have paid a Financial Institutions Tax of 8.5% of net income after dividends and statutory...

Tax Bill Unlikely To Move In Election Year.
March 5, 2004... The 2003 session marked the most concerted effort in years by Iowa bankers to increase credit unions' taxes. Although legislation to tax credit unions with more than $150 million in assets did pass the House and Senate Commerce Committees, the...

CUs Unmentioned, But $300M Tax Hike On Table.
March 5, 2004... The tax threat would probably be best described as moderate. Our state faces some very real budget challenges at this time. The situation has been exacerbated by a Kansas District Court judge ruling that the formula the state utilizes to...

All Quiet On The Kentucky Front.
March 8, 2004... The tax issue in our state has remained quiet. We and the Kentucky Bankers Association are currently looking for ways to work together on common issues that affect all financial institutions. So far, this has been very successful. We have...

Louisiana On The Watch For Tax Legislation.
March 8, 2004... With Louisiana facing a budget shortfall this year, our lawmakers will be looking for additional funds anywhere they can. To prepare for the possibility of a tax issue in our state, we have asked our credit unions for support through funding...

CU Exemption Issue Expected To Resurface.
March 8, 2004... Although the state faces a significant budget shortfall, the idea of taxing credit unions has not been offered as a legitimate solution for the state's budget problems. In the mid-1990's, Maine was one of the first state's to successfully fend...

Banks Seek Bank-like Treatment of CUs.
March 8, 2004... Bankers and their powerful trade groups began advocating credit union taxation in the 1920s. For many years, those direct efforts took the form of legislative filings to either tax credit unions outright or indirectly seeking to redefine credit...

Pro-CU Bill Passed, No Time To Be Complacent.
March 8, 2004... On a scale of 1-10, the tax threat in Michigan is about a five. In December, the governor signed the Michigan Credit Union Act (MCUA) modernization bill into law. Even with this monumental passage, credit unions must remain vigilant against any...

Minn. Expects Banks To Use 'Anti-CU' Strategy.
March 8, 2004... Minnesota currently faces a moderate level taxation threat. During 2003, $4.5-billion in spending was cut to eliminate the largest deficit in state history. Looking to 2004, deficits are likely to return, although they will total only about...

Promise From Governor Keeps Taxation At Bay.
March 8, 2004... State taxation does not appear to be a threat this year. Newly elected Gov. Haley Barbour stated at the 2003 league annual meeting that "taxing credit unions is a bad idea and I am against it." We also formed a state PAC last year and...

GOP Majority Pledges Not To Raise Taxes.
March 8, 2004... In Missouri, the Republican majority is vowing to not raise taxes. However, both Republican and Democratic lawmakers in Missouri anticipate a shortage of revenue-with projections of funding gaps ranging as high as $1 billion. What they do not...

Past Bank Attacks Make Montana CUs Wary.
March 8, 2004... Montana does not have a regular legislative session this year. In the past bankers have bashed credit unions before state legislators and have coordinated a lawsuit on field of membership. They have not introduced damaging legislation in the...

Nebraska CUs Already Living With Taxation.
March 8, 2004... The tax issue in Nebraska is some what muted by the fact that the Cornhusker State is one of only six that impose an income and/or franchise tax on its state-chartered credit unions. As a result, the bankers continue to complain about the...

On Deadline.
March 9, 2004... Oregon, Washington CU Leagues Mull Merger FEDERAL WAY, Wash.-Representatives of the Washington CU League are currently in talks with their counterparts from the CU Association of Oregon on a combination of the two state trade groups,...

'New Mortgage Option Needed': Greenspan Makes Pitch Before CU Audience.
March 9, 2004... Federal Reserve Chairman Alan Greenspan lauded the role credit unions play in the financial services market and called on credit unions and other lenders last week to help consumers further by expanding the types of mortgage products they...

Court Hears Recall Arguments: Groups Argue To Keep, Get Rid of Board.
March 9, 2004... A Washington State judge heard arguments from both sides regarding a possible special membership meeting that could result in the recall of the nine board members at Columbia Credit Union, which has sought to convert to a mutual savings bank....

Forget Wealth Management.
March 9, 2004... Yes, forget wealth management. That's contradictory guidance in an issue whose cover story is about wealth management. But let me explain. Wealth management is currently the holy grail of the retail securities business, especially at...

Bank Brokers See Little Fallout From Mutual Fund Scandals.
March 9, 2004... The tumult that has engulfed the mutual fund industry over the past several months - scandals involving late-trading, market timing, excessive fees and poor disclosure - would seem to have created major headaches for bank reps. But instead...

Morgan, Bank One Differ in Approaches To Retail Brokerage and Insurance.
March 9, 2004... Combining the investment and insurance businesses of J.P. Morgan Chase & Co. and Chicago's Bank One Corp. will bring together the former's $277 million in 2002 insurance revenue and $515 million in assets under management with Bank One's $442...

Big Easy Confab: 8th Annual NCCR Conference Draws Near.
March 9, 2004... This year's National Collections & Credit Risk Conference returns to New Orleans, where we look forward to welcoming the many hundreds of credit grantors, collections firms, and solutions providers who will be gathering to discuss the leading...

Letters to the Editor.
March 9, 2004... Supply & Demand To the Editor: I voted no [regarding whether distressed debt prices will continue to rise], but not for the reason given. It is simple supply and demand. I believe, rightly or wrongly, that there will be a large amount...

Clarification.
March 9, 2004... Fairbanks Capital is not a wholly owned division of The PMI Group Inc., as reported in "Trouble on the Home Front" (CCR February), but The PMI Group is a majority shareholder of Fairbanks. Letters to the Editor Letters, which may be...

Survey Results.
March 9, 2004... Here's how visitors to Credit & Collections World, Collections & Credit Risk's website, voted on this month's Instant Survey: In the debt sales industry, pricing is always a hot topic. Most buyers, brokers, and sellers of distressed debt...

Credit Crunch Looming?
March 10, 2004... With consumer debt in the United States hovering at all-time highs and new reports from the American Bankers Association that 4.09% of all credit card accounts were delinquent in the third quarter 2003 - which is the highest rate on record -...

What's New?
March 10, 2004... Senex Partners With Hospital Group SENEX Services Corp. signs a three-year agreement with University HealthSystem Consortium, Oak Brook, Ill., to provide bad-debt purchasing services to UHC member hospitals and health centers. SENEX is a...

Chase, Bank One Merge.
March 10, 2004... J. P. Morgan Chase & Co., New York, and Bank One Corp. are merging into a combined company with assets of $1.1 trillion. The company will have 2,300 branches in 17 states. The deal, approved by both boards of directors, includes a...

New York Life Wins Dalbar Honors.
March 10, 2004... New York Life took top honors for its pre- and post-sale support for bank, wirehouse and independent reps in an annual service ranking of financial companies conducted by Dalbar, the Boston-based consulting firm. Despite its recent...

Moody's: Annuities' Growth Threatens Insurers.
March 10, 2004... Conditions may be improving for the life insurance industry, but it still has a distance left to run before its outlook really improves, according to a recent report from Moody's Investor Services. The ratings agency downgraded the life...

Product News.
March 10, 2004... Fred Alger Management has launched a China-U.S. Growth Fund that invests in Chinese, Hong Kong, U.S. and other Asian or multinational companies expected to benefit from China's economic expansion. It imposes a 2% redemption fee on trades made...

What's Next for Electronic Payments?: Cell phones, biometrics, prepaid cards - these and other new options are the wave of the payments future. But will all of them gain critical mass?
March 10, 2004... Looking back, it all makes sense. Thirty years ago, Americans began to use a little piece of plastic to make in-store purchases. Twenty years ago, personal computers started to make their way into homes. Ten years ago, mobile telephones began...

8th Annual National Collections & Credit Risk Conference.
March 10, 2004... We are delighted to welcome you - attendees, exhibitors, sponsors, and speakers - to the 8th Annual National Collections & Credit Risk Conference, "The Changing Credit Landscape: Advances in Risk Management and Collection Strategies," sponsored...

Keynote Speakers.
March 10, 2004... David Moffett, Vice Chairman & Chief Financial Officer, U.S.BANCORP David Moffett is Vice Chairman and Chief Financial Officer of the new U.S. Bancorp, formed by the 2001 merger of Firstar Corporation and U.S. Bancorp. He is responsible...

How 2004 Is Shaping Up: Industry leaders see more competition, as well as increased demand for efficiency, ahead. Clients' desire for instant access and their security concerns are creating more pressure on margins. Is there a positive side to these challenges?
March 10, 2004... As the economy improves but new job creation remains sluggish, the credit and collections industry faces a host of challenges in 2004. Concerns are widespread about whether the year will bring improved placement and collectibility rates, or...

Ex-Members (But Not All) Cut Out From IPO.
March 11, 2004... Two more former credit unions began the process of going public through initial public offerings last week, but with a new twist-the former member/owners of the credit union are no longer being given preference in the stock offerings. Up...

Reg Relief Bill Favored By CUs Expected To Move.
March 11, 2004... The House is expected to vote a broad-based regulatory relief package, which includes more than a dozen credit union provisions, sometime in the next few weeks, and could begin deliberations on a broader credit union bill soon after, key...

CU, Sponsor Co. Partner On Home Ownership.
March 11, 2004... Tyson Credit Union employees are $3,000 to $5,000 closer to buying a new home as part of the CU's partnership with Tyson Foods, Freddie Mac, and the National Credit Union Foundation. "We had been talking with Tyson Foods about ways we could...

New York Life Wins Dalbar Honors.
March 11, 2004... New York Life took top honors for its pre- and post-sale support for bank, wirehouse and independent reps in an annual service ranking of financial companies conducted by Dalbar, the Boston-based consulting firm. Despite its recent...