WASHINGTON—Congress should take further legislative action to ensure credit unions remain in position to serve their members, CUNA told the House Financial Services Committee.
In a letter sent ahead of a hearing on pandemic-relief efforts, the trade group wrote, “CUNA appreciates the steps taken in the 116th Congress that helped credit unions remain in a position to serve their members…As such, credit unions have tailored their service to meet immediate and long-term needs of their members by providing low- and no-interest loans, payment forbearance, fee waivers, payroll advances, loan modifications, and other services that help meet the needs of their members in crisis.
“While we understand that the next COVID-19 bill could be moved through Congress under process which may limit the inclusion of certain policies, we urge you to consider not just the immediate needs of Americans, but the long-term economic recovery,” the letter added.
Specific Actions
CUNA is calling on Congress to take the following actions:
- Exempt member business loans from the cap during and for one year after the national emergency
- Provide temporary flexibility to NCUA to offer forbearance from Prompt Corrective Action requirements
- Call on the Treasury Department to provide clear guidance for the eligibility of the Emergency Capital Investment Program to ensure the Rapid Response Program process does not favor past Community Development Financial Institutions Fund awardees
CU Ledger
Separately, CUNA announced a transfer of Credit Union Financial Exchange (CUFX) to CU Ledger.
“CUFX is the result of a grass-roots initiative,” said Chris Saneda, past CUNA Technology Council chair, CUFX steering committee member and executive vice president and chief operations officer at Virginia CU. “It started with senior IT credit union executives who recognized a need for credit unions as they were trying to get their different systems to work together. The CUNA Technology Council leadership was instrumental in helping to get CUFX off the ground and continued to provide resources as it progressed into its position today. With the transition to CU Ledger, CUFX will get added support and continue to work with its users and CUNA Technology Council volunteers to assist with future improvements.”
CUFX continues to thrive and meet the necessities of its credit union users. The latest update, which went live this past fall, included the advancement to support non-unique account ID architectures. This newest advancement was driven and reviewed by three core system providers currently implementing CUFX, CUNA said.
“Since its inception, CUFX has been evolving to meet the needs of credit unions,” said David Rohn, vice president of CUNA Councils. “With its transition to CULedger and continued connection to credit union technology experts, we’re confident that this solution will continue to evolve, expand and assist credit unions.”
CU Ledger delivers a trusted peer-to-peer services network of verifiable exchange for financial cooperatives. Its solutions include MemberPass, a digital ID held by credit union members that protects credit unions and their members from identity theft and fraud in all banking interactions.
“CU Ledger is proud to incorporate CUFX into our product offerings for credit unions,” said John Ainsworth, President and CEO of CU Ledger. “This solution is already being utilized with other solutions within our portfolio, so we understand its value and support its continued advancements.”