ROANOKE, Va.–Did a former CEO who said her knowledge of credit union management was gained by reading “Everything I Know About Business I Learned from the Grateful Dead”?
That question was at the center of a report by the Roanoke Times related to the failure of FedStar FCU. As CUToday.info reported here, the former CEO, Kelly Givens, pleaded guilty in federal court to charges related to her use of credit union funds for personal purchases from 2018 and 2020.
Givens was the CEO of FedStar beginning in 2016. According to court documents, between 2018-20 she used the FedStar credit card and FedStar business Amazon account for personal purchases totaling more than $12,000. Givens purchased running shoes, hiking shoes, tickets for sporting events, and electronic devices, among other personal purchases, the court said. Givens now awaits sentencing.
The credit union was merged out in 2021.
Enhanced Punishment Sought
“And federal prosecutors are seeking an enhanced punishment for Givens, arguing that her shoddy accounting practices – which she hid from regulators and the credit union’s board of directors – played a key role in the demise of the Roanoke Valley banking institution,” the Roanoke Times reported.
But Givens’ attorney questioned how $12,000 in fraudulent credit card charges could have brought down a credit union worth about $23 million, the Times stated.
According to the report, the government contends that Givens, 38, cooked the books at FedStar to conceal her credit card transactions and to protect her job by making it appear the credit union was in good financial health and growing.
‘In Over Her Head’
In testimony last week, the Roanoke Times reported, “Givens suggested at times that she was in over her head at FedStar.”
“Givens has no college degree or any formal training in accounting. She described herself as ‘not a good student’ in high school,” the Times reported. “Most of her banking education was acquired on the job, when she started as a teller with FedStar and worked her way up. In 2016, she was asked to take the head job.”
The Times report said Given testified that “Accounting is difficult. It’s a hard thing to learn. I wasn’t sure if I could do it. But I didn’t want to let the credit union down.”
Finding Inspiration
It added that Givens said she found inspiration in the book “Everything I Know About Business I Learned from the Grateful Dead,” an account of how members of the rock band encouraged generosity and creating “good vibes” in dealing with co-workers and the public, according to the Times.
The report noted that NCUA began to flag concerns during a 2020 examination, finding
poor record keeping, questionable loan approvals and a significant absence of internal controls.
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