Firefighter Credit Union Newsroom

The Federal Reserve is committed to using its full range of tools to support the U.S. economy in this challenging time, thereby promoting its maximum employment and price stability goals. The COVID-19 pandemic is causing tremendous human and economic hardship across the United States and around the world. Amid progress on vaccinations and strong policy support, indicators of economic activity and employment have strengthened. The sectors most adversely affected by the pandemic remain weak but have shown improvement. Inflation has risen, largely reflecting transitory factors. Overall financial conditions remain accommodative, in part reflecting policy measures to support the economy and the flow of credit to U.S. households and businesses. The path of the economy will depend significantly on the course of the virus, including progress on vaccinations. The ongoing public health crisis continues to weigh on the economy, and risks to the economic outlook remain. The Committee seeks to achi...

MADISON, Wis.–The CU industry loan-to-share is expected to hit an eight-year-low, and yield-on-assets ratio should hit an all-time low by year end, according to a new forecast from CUNA Mutual. ROA is also expected to decline. Meanwhile, lending at credit unions is projected to grow just 5% in 2021. One bright spot: new-auto loan balances rose at a 0.1% pace in February, the first positive growth number since July 2019, according to CUNA Mutual’s April Trends Report, which is based on CU data through February 2021. Just 221,000 new members were added during the first two months of the year, down from 641,000 reported in the first two months of 2020, the Trends Report added. Another bright spot: The CUNA Mutual forecast sees a much stronger economy ahead. Overall, CUNA Mutual’s economists said they expect the U.S. economy to grow at a “remarkable” 6% in 2021. That would be the fastest annual growth since the 7.2% reported in 1984, which followed on the heels of the severe recession in 1...

ARLINGTON, Va.—Existing-home sales fell 3.7% in March to a seasonally-adjusted rate of 6.01 million units, representing a 12.3% increase in sales versus a year ago. Curt Long "Headwinds are mounting as mortgage rates spiked 20 basis points over the course of the month, causing demand to dip and buyers to hold off," said Curt Long, NAFCU's chief economist and vice president of research. "Mortgage applications have also fallen to their pre-pandemic level. "New homes being built should also relieve some price pressure, but they won’t be ready until later in the year. NAFCU expects sales to be strong for the rest of the year, only limited by supply and the resulting price increases," concluded Long. Sales fell in all four regions in March, with the West seeing the largest drop (-8%), followed by the South (-2.9%), Midwest (-2.3%), and Northeast (-1.3%). Versus a year ago, sales were up in all regions over the month. The median existing-home price rose from $3...

ALEXANDRIA, Va.–A former NCUA chairman is suggesting the current NCUA chairman needs to put more serious issues on the board meeting agenda. During remarks offered during the April board meeting, at which the board was provided updates and at which no votes took place, NCUA board member Rodney Hood, who was replaced as chairman by the Biden Administration by Todd Harper, closed his comments relative to the NCUSIF by saying there are meatier matters to be dealt with. “In closing, if I may Mr. Chairman, today’s agenda is extremely light,” said Hood. “I hope we can work together in a bipartisan fashion in the months ahead to have board agendas that are much more robust. The credit union community and this board deserve it.” At issue are a number of proposals on which Harper cast a dissenting vote while he was a board member prior to being elevated to chair. As the lone Democrat, Harper is in the minority with fellow board members Rodney Hood and Kyle Hauptman being Republican appointees...

The Albany Firemen’s Federal Credit Union is announcing a name change to NY Firefighters Bravest Federal Credit Union . This change is in addition to a new TIP charter that will allow all New York State Professional Firefighters the ability to join our credit union. We will be able to serve firefighters, which was our original field of membership. Our outreach program will start with a new branch established in Manhattan . This opportunity will allow the FDNY firefighters to be served by a credit union that deals with the lifestyle and demands of firefighters. Our 85 years of operating in the Albany area with 3 branches has given us the experience to open the new branch with our personal member attention and services that will meet the needs of our new members. Our new website can be found at www.nybravestfcu.org

Today’s environment just might be the most challenging one that credit union boards have faced in modern memory. The pressures of serving on volunteer credit union boards are extremely high. Just like their counterparts on paid boards at for-profit companies, credit union boards have a major fiduciary responsibility, without the attendant compensation and often without appropriate recognition. Yet like their for-profit counterparts, they govern substantial financial organizations and are responsible for managing capital risk. Credit union board members are industry heroes. They assure member service and financial safety through their leadership in good governance. They provide insights into strategic goals. They oversee management of risk, which seems greater today than ever before. Current issues include an intensely competitive environment, often from larger and better funded entities. Organizational stresses include litigation, regulatory compliance and decisions related to technolo...

  Weekly News Summary Here are some things that were in the news last week. Please share these articles with your Supervisory Committee and Board of Directors. If you missed previous editions of the weekly news, summaries of those can be viewed at our  archive .    Have a great week! Mike Richards, CPA     Economic and Industry Issues Knowledge is the key to effective corporate governance. Staying abreast of economic and industry issues affecting your credit union will prepare you for those responsibilities. Gain momentum and propel the board forward Read More Fed expects t...

LAWRNECEVILLE, Ga.—Black Book, in a joint report with Fitch Ratings, is forecasting an annual depreciation rate of 5% for used vehicles in 2021 as the effects of the pandemic continue to be felt. The forecast comes after a record-low depreciation rate in 2020 at 2.0%. Report Highlights: Other forecasts from Black Book include: Manufacturing shutdowns impacted new sales, and this, coupled with the government stimulus payments and added benefits, led to an uptick in demand of used inventory On the other hand, lack of repossessions and delayed lease returns created used inventory shortages Full-size trucks and luxury segments in 2020 outperformed depreciation expectations, with full-size trucks appreciating 8.7%. Additionally, the premium luxury car segment depreciated a mere 8.1%, compared to 2019’s 25.9% Fitch said it believes auto loan and lease ABS (auto ABS) asset performance will be supported by strong used vehicle values containing loss severity, and resulting in positive asset r...

MIAMI–A “significant misunderstanding” over what open banking is all about is hampering its adoption, according to a new study of 2,000 global consumers by Mambu, a banking and financial services platform. The Census wide survey, commissioned by Mambu, found that more than half (52%) of consumers have never heard of open banking and 61% have never used it, in spite of 80% of respondents using one or more mobile finance apps. Open banking is the system of allowing access and control of consumer banking and financial accounts through third-party applications.  “The research reveals the majority of customers don’t understand what open banking is, how it works and what it means for them,” said Elliott Limb, Mambu’s chief customer officer. “But it also reveals they do care about receiving better financial services that support their lifestyles – smart banking. If banks address this need and lack of understanding, it will help banks build customer loyalty and provide genuinely innovative...

WASHINGTON–With both credit union trade groups pressing Congress to bring fintechs under the same regulatory umbrella as other financial institutions, one of the key questions to be asking is what happens when things go wrong, according to NAFCU. Credit union trade groups have called on Congress to ensure a “level playing field” between unregulated fintechs and credit unions. A number of fintechs have in the last year seen strong user growth into the millions of customers. Congress held a hearing on the issue last week. “What we saw from the hearing is there are still a lot of questions,” said NAFCU EVP and General Counsel Carrie Hunt. “We are going to see more hearings on this issue. I think, ultimately, there is going to be a lot of disagreement as to what that regulation should look like. There is agreement that traditional financial providers can find value in partners, including fintechs, which can innovate quickly. It’s when they go one step further that begs the question around ...

ALEXANDRIA, Va.–New NCUA Chairman Todd Harper’s term officially expired on Monday, but he is not expected to be exiting the board anytime soon. Numerous NCUA board members have in the past served in a “holdover” capacity, often for extended periods. Harper, the lone Democratic representative on the three-person panel, joined the board in early 2019 and was elevated to chairman earlier this year with the election of Joe Biden as president. Harper had previously served as director of Public and Congressional Affairs at NCUA and as chief policy advisor to the chairman from 2011 to 2017. He replaced as chairman Rodney Hood, whose term runs until 2023 and who previously served on the NCUA board from 2005-2010. The newest member of the NCUA board, Kyle Hauptman, has a term that is to run through August 2, 2025. An NCUA board seat is supposed to be a six-year term, but other factors can affect the length of that actual service. Both Hood and Hauptman are Republican appointees, which has creat...

The Trust for Credit Unions (TCU) based in Washington, D.C., reported Tuesday that its two bond funds, the Ultra-Short Duration and Short Duration Portfolios, had total combined assets of $5 billion as of April 12, after attracting nearly $1 billion in new investments in a single month. It was nearing $3 billion in late November 2020. TCU’s previous record was $4.1 billion, reached in March 2003. CUNA has estimated that credit unions held $1.66 trillion in savings in February, 19.6% more than they held a year earlier. The gain of the previous 12 months ending February 2020 was 9.1%. Surplus funds (cash plus investments) rose 48% to $653 billion as of Feb. 28, an increase of $210.5 billion over the previous 12 months. As credit unions continue to seek competitive investment options to help them manage excess liquidity, TCU has attracted a record number of new credit union investors while continuing to assist their long-time institutional investor base. TCU was founded in 1987 by credit...

BASINGSTOKE, U.K.– The number of users of software-based facial recognition to secure payments will exceed 1.4 billion globally by 2025, from just 671 million in 2020, according to a new study from Juniper Research. “This rapid growth of 120% demonstrates how widespread facial recognition has become; fueled by its low barriers to entry, a front-facing camera and appropriate software,” Juniper said, noting the research identified the implementation of FaceID by Apple as accelerating the growth of the wider facial recognition market, despite the challenges to facial recognition during the pandemic with face mask use. The research recommends that facial recognition vendors implement robust and rapidly evolving AI based verification checks to ensure the validity of user identity, or risk losing user trust in the authentication method as spoofing attempts increase, Juniper reported. Fingerprint Sensors The new research, Mobile Payment Authentication: Biometrics, Regulation & Market Fore...