First-responder Credit Union Newsroom

The three-part video module provided by NCUA, available online   here , examines current trends in mergers, when a credit union board should consider a merger and how to negotiate a merger agreement that best serves the credit union’s interests. Every credit union should discuss the possibilities of a future merger in their strategic planning.

Lets welcome, to our line up of speakers,   Geoff Bacino a partner at Bacino & Associates , a national government relations, strategic planning and business solutions firm. Previously, Geoff served on the Board of the National Credit Union Administration (NCUA) as a appointee of President Bill Clinton. He was also nominated to serve on the Federal Housing Finance Board by President George W. Bush at the recommendation of Senator Harry Reid. Geoff will provide some insights on the upcoming election.  Elections are one of the necessary evils (or glorious benefits) of a democratic system. The upcoming 2016 election includes a presidential race as well as the full House of Representatives and 1/3 of the Senate. These races can have an impact on credit unions for years to come. With more and more financial services issues coming before Congress, which candidates are more “credit union-friendly”? And with the chance to nominate three new NCUA Board members over ...

Fairfax, VA:  FedComp, who is currently serving 17 firefighter credit unions and is the leading provider of Core Data Solutions for “small entity” credit unions* for over 30 years, is pleased to announce a partnership of three industry leaders to provide digital financial services for “small entity” Credit Unions. The combined forces of FedComp, Ongoing Operations, a CUSO dedicated to providing affordable technology solutions and MoadBus, a US based international provider of mobile and internet banking to both large and small financial institutions, provides FedComp the ability to bring a full range of digital financial services at an affordable cost to the “small entity” Credit Unions. FedComp is able to provide these services by leveraging the extensive experiences of MoadBus in serving unbanked and underbanked consumer segments worldwide. This represents an exciting breakthrough in the ability of small asset credit unions to provide increased banking functionality, a lev...

"Credit unions and CUSOs that are quick to point to the strength of their firewalls are correct, said Stickley—those firewalls are excellent at keeping outsiders outside. The problem is the cybercrime is taking place due to insiders opening the door and letting scammers do their damage from the inside.  “If you look at every single breach today--Anthem, Home Depot, Target–I guarantee you every one started with an email, and that started the ball rolling to get the breach to happen. Email is the bane of your existence. Email is extremely dangerous to you, your organization and all your members.” So why email?  “Attacking a network via the Internet is hard,” said Stickley. “And employees have access to everything.  If I can gain access to an employee’s desktop or credentials, breaking in becomes much easier.”" Read complete article at: LinkedIn? Should be 'Let Them In' / THE boost / CUToday.info - CU Today :

OHIO After years of waiting, Ohio's firefighters are one step closer to getting better protection against cancer. Senate bill 27 passed the insurance committee Tuesday morning. It's the fourth time legislation has been introduced but the first time it has ever gotten traction. It would recognize a link between firefighting and cancer. "A day like today is really the first step in helping those firefighters," Doug Stern with the Ohio Association of Professional Firefighters said. "They kind of go unrecognized for the sacrifice they make when they get these occupational cancers. This is one way that we can honor the sacrifice that those members have made." FRANKFORT, Ky. A bill that reclassifies a Kentucky firefighter’s cancer death as ‘work-related’ becomes official Tuesday. Secretary of State Alison Lundergan Grimes says Tuesday she will formally receive and file Senate Bill 195. The General Assembly passed the bill unanimously. It became law without th...

Early Bird registration expires July 1st, 2016 Don't miss this great opportunity to visit Denver, CO. "the gateway to the Rockies" , and attend the "Go To" conference for credit unions serving firefighter's, first responders and their families. "NCOFCU 2016 Annual Educational Conference"  September 28th - October 1st, 2016  Grand Hyatt Downtown. For information and registration click:  HERE Early Bird registration expires July 1st, 2016

MADISON, Wis.—Ransomware attacks, already a quiet concern that has been growing among credit unions, are expected to dramatically increase this year—with one analyst saying there is “no silver bullet” to prevent the threat. Ransomware is a type of malicious software designed to block access to a computer system or PC until a sum of money is paid. In the case of a financial institution, crooks first use the malware to encrypt the contents of the FI’s data and then extract a ransom in exchange for decrypting the information and allowing the victim to regain access. It’s an issue, according to one regulator source who asked for anonymity that has been growing within credit unions, many of which have paid ransoms to regain access to their data and have chosen not to speaking publicly about the crime. “This has become a huge problem,” said Ken Otsuka, senior consultant in CUNA Mutual Group’s risk management department, adding that CUNA Mutual Group’s cyber liability coverage data d...

Jeffrey McGill has been a Charlotte firefighter for 16 years and he's locked in a battle with cancer.  He's a father, a husband and a hero, but lately he's been fighting a battle for his own life. They have such strong faith and they're so optimistic, you know, in the midst of all this," said Lisa Sexton, Executive Director of  All Things Possible .  McGill has been with the Charlotte Fire Department for 16 years but hasn't been able to work lately. He was diagnosed with stomach cancer and has been going through treatment.  He's had chemotherapy, they've done surgery, they went in to do surgery to remove the tumor after they had shrunk it and found that there were 10 more behind it, Want to help Jeffrey McGill?   CLICK HERE! 

"The widow of an FDNY lieutenant has scored an estimated $3 million payday after a judge ruled that “shocking and unconscionable” actions by the city denied her his rightful pension. Jackie Kaht Fernandez spent nine years fighting the Fire Department’s pension board and its doctors to prove that the sudden death of her husband, Lt. Cruz Fernandez, in 2006 at age 52 was related to his time spent at Ground Zero.  “The word ‘no’ is not in my vocabulary,” Jackie Fernandez, 53, told The Post. In an unusually harsh ruling March 2, Brooklyn Supreme Court Justice Daniel Velasquez ripped the city for not siding with her sooner and said it operated in “bad faith” with her. Fernandez said her husband — known as “Bombero” (Spanish for “firefighter”) — competed in nine New York City Marathons before his work at the World Trade Center site. He retired in November 2002 after 24 years of service, feeling run down and having trouble catching his breath, she said." Read Complete Stor...

Your key financial service is Checking. Who’s the Best at Checking in the Credit Union Movement? Moebs Services, an economic research firm, conducted a study of 6,284 Credit Unions from 2 nd Quarter 2015 call reports to find out who is the best at providing Checking. Results are based on who has the most profitable checking portfolio, who has the highest checking penetration, and who does the best job of crossselling other services. Moebs Services designed the Best in Checking Study to reflect the transaction account of the future. “We wanted to identify those CUs who are currently operating at the year 2020” says Mike Moebs. HOW THE STUDY WAS DONE “In talking with Regulators, Legislators, Credit Union CEOs, Vendors in IT, and members themselves, it became clear that Financial Institutions needed to be good at 3 things in checking to be winners in 2020,” notes Moebs. The study shows the 3 major criteria to be: Checking was no longer the “milk’n eggs” of financial services or a los...

By  J. Daniel Young CU Times "The NCUA said it does not foresee stabilization fund assessments following the regulator’s Thursday posting of updated information on the costs of the Corporate Resolution Program and performance of the NCUA Guaranteed Notes Program. According to the data, both the upper and lower ends of the projected assessment range for the Temporary Corporate Credit Union Stabilization Fund remained negative, at -$1.6 billion to -$3.2 billion.  As long as both ends of the range remain negative, the agency said it is unlikely it will charge credit unions future stabilization fund assessments.  “Six years ago, projections of possible stabilization fund assessments to credit unions ran as high as $9.2 billion,” NCUA Board Chairman Debbie Matz said. “However,