Pearl...

"I started out with nothing and still have most of it left."

From The Field....

"There continues to be an influx of new members with all this Bank Transfer Day brew-ha-ha....."


(Think that would be an absolutely fabulous name for a beer....!)

From The Field...

"Been trying hard to help the new manager get accumulated to his new role...."


(It does kinda start adding up after awhile...)

Where's Waldo?....Part 3

Still very, very quiet on the NCUA Board nominee issue.... where are the CU advocates for fairness and transparency?  Where are the advocates of freedom of speech, freedom of the press....?  We seem to have little courage - less shame....


Increasingly it appears, Ms. Decker has been...

The Three Magi .....

Merry Christmas !!!!

A Season with Messages of Hope!!!

Unfortunately, given the high risk and great uncertainty surrounding the "irrational expectations" of faith, hope, and human understanding;   NCUA has rated Christmas.... 

Ho - Ho - Ho ! ....

HO!

Good Luck Tonight !!!  Hope you've been nice...

HO!

HO!

'Course if you've been naughty....then...

Prehistoric Fossils?

Q:  Has the Wall Street banking industry so damaged its reputation with the American public that it is headed down the path of the dinosaur?


A:  Yes, the industry is pretty clearly developing into a...

From the Field...

"A part time MSR is now full time. Co-workers made her first day a memorable one by naming her 'front desk queen' and giving her a crown and a magic wand. Members seemed to be..."

Where's Waldo....Part 2

Q:  What is your position on the recent NCUA Board nomination process which has given both Ms. Carla Decker and the entire credit union movement such an unnecessary "black-eye"?

•  CUNA ?     
•  NAFCU ?   
•  NCUA  ?    
•  NASCUS ?  

A:  "So far we have decided to...

Where's Waldo...??

Here's a "map" of Washington, D.C. girls and boys.... Can you find the nominee?!!

Why is everyone so-o-o-o quiet?  Why are "we" afraid to ask?  Who/What are "we" afraid of?  Ah-h-h, the "new transparency"!!!

Have we looked.....

Maintaining Credibility..... "In-" or "Un-" ????

Despite the thorough and positive legal research developed by attorneys with CUNA to the contrary; NCUA is apparently determined to maintain (without any visible additional thought) its previous opinion, that CUs may withdraw from the NCUSIF without fulfilling their pre-existing financial obligations to the Fund for the demise of the corporate network.

For a CU to be permitted by the NCUA to "skip out" on a debt owed to other credit unions as well is simply unjust and unfair. 

NCUA's stance on unfairness and injustice remains.....

Return On Investment .... "ROI"

Talked a little bit about the effect of inflation on savings last week; and how low rates lead to a "losing hand" for savers in this economy.  Low savings rates are one thing, but failed to mention the trend among a few institutions toward actually charging consumers a fee for saving. You actually have to pay a financial institution a fee to keep your money!

Paying a fee, rather than earning an interest rate, leads to what is known as a "negative return on investment"!  In other words, at the end of each year you end up with less and less on deposit! A charge (a reduction in principal) has been applied to your balance - over and above the "inflation loss" you also incurred.  Pretty mean game for the prudent, the frugal, the financially responsible!

As a credit union, you invest member deposits in loans, securities, branches, and other assets to attempt to "do good" and to earn a positive ROI for your savings members.  Ever considered which of your CU investments has produced the worst ROI over the last three years?  Which of your investments produced the worst value proposition?  Which of your investments actually produced the worst negative ROI for your members?

Take a guess...

From The Field...

"The latest on the two remote ATMs is that installation was to begin on the 28th; however, Reliable Construction Co. does not seem to be so."

A CU Tony Award For Service....

"Great branch, great staff, great spirit and spunk - GREAT SERVICE!"

"A purrfect.... 

A Double Decker Snafu...

  Somebody should be ashamed.......

A Double "Decker"....     

7,000 credit unions, 90 million Americans rely on the federal insurance provided by the NCUSIF for their peace of mind.  The NCUA and the NCUSIF are governed by a three member Board appointed by the President of the United States. It's a leadership position of high importance -particularly in uncertain financial times. 

...assassination through "double dealing".

We just got embarrassed big time by an act of recklessness that calls the entire credit union movement into question. An NCUA Board nominee was "put in play" right before our eyes and then publicly and purposefully "assassinated". Who is behind this type of ineptitude?  Who is so politically obtuse; so ethically insensitive?  Not too hard to determine that "the powers that be" at NCUA have  created yet another mess, another unforced error of "robust" proportions. Board nominations don't "just happen"!  Nominees are not random selections!  You really don't need to think too hard to know exactly who was responsible for the "set up" and who was responsible for the "take down".  Once again, personal political self-interest trumped the financial safety and soundness interests of 90 million American credit union members.

But maybe "our Leaders" don't think it matters much, since credit unions are such "small potatoes" in the grand scheme of things in D.C. - I mean who really cares about those little cooperatives anyway??

One leader who will care about this type of dangerous political farce, this unnecessary source of "FoxNews" ridicule, this type of "Blagojevich blunder" lives here...

Hillel The Elder

"If I am not for myself, who will be for me?

If I am only for myself, then what am I?

If not now, when?"

(Pirkei Avot 1:14)

From The Field.....

"The housing market continues to be very difficult.  Sales are few and far between.  In some areas, when their homes do not sell; members have started renting outhouses..."

(Yep, I'd say that really is a pretty tough market... )

Back To The Future?

The Failure of Capital Corporate Credit Union

United States General Accounting Office

Statement of Charles A. Bowsher

Comptroller General of the United States

Testimony before Congress

February, 1995

(Excerpts)

We Have A Plan! - NCUA

"NCUA's supervision of Cap Corp was ineffective on several fronts.  For four years, NCUA essentially tolerated weaknesses in Cap Corp's internal controls; also, examiners who lacked investment expertise evaluated individual securities rather than securities portfolios, overlooking aggregate interest rate risk. .....Cap Corp's failure raises concerns about interest rate risk being taken on by credit unions, especially in CMO investments..."

"GAO is making one recommendation to Congress and eight to NCUA to improve the safety and soundness of credit unions."

"Recommendation to Congress"

"Congress should continue to oversee NCUA's actions to ensure that an effective regulatory framework for corporate credit unions exists, including adequate capital requirements, and consider legislative action if NCUA fails to implement the needed reforms."

".... if NCUA fails to...."

IF ?!  IF ?!  IF ?!

(If you'd like to read the entire gory details, go to GAO.gov...)