A former National Credit Union Administration official continued an ongoing series of blog posts raising concerns over credit union acquisitions.
New Post: In his latest blog post, Callahan & Associates co-founder and former NCUA Central Liquidity Fund President Chip Filson spotlights the lack of credit union member input on credit union acquisitions.
Little Transparency: Filson notes that credit union charters given up in the first three months of 2022 outnumber newly issued charters 41 to zero, with the 365,700 affected members holding an average ownership of $1,500. “There is no information that any of the members were consulted” before credit union management agreed to acquisitions, he writes.
Prior Criticism: Filson has also raised concerns over credit union acquisitions of community banks. In previous blog posts, he notes that credit unions are buying banks at multiples of book value in all-cash purchases that convert firms subject to market monitoring into private entities.
ICBA Op-ed: In a recent American Banker op-ed, ICBA Chairman Brad Bolton wrote that Congress should build on state actions to curb credit union acquisitions of community banks by investigating at the federal level.
Grassroots: Community bankers can continue urging Congress to hold hearings on the credit union tax exemption using a customizable message to lawmakers on ICBA’s Wake Up page and its Wake Up Messaging Playbook.
