ALEXANDRIA, Va.–During its Sept. 17 meeting, the NCUA board was briefed on the status of the Enterprise Solution Modernization Program’s first project, known as the Modern Examination and Risk Identification Tool or MERIT. NCUA said the system will replace its legacy examination platform that has reached the end of its service life.
“Although this project has been one of the agency’s largest expenditures, the NCUA’s staff, state supervisory authorities, and the credit union industry will certainly benefit from the modernization of our examination software and the establishment of our secured infrastructure that will support future modernization initiatives,” NCUA Chairman Rodney Hood said.
According to the agency, MERIT and its associated systems will provide users the ability to securely transfer documents to an examiner, securely access and download examination reports, and provide status updates on findings. Users can also request due date changes. These capabilities will greatly improve the examination process.
The second release of MERIT was deployed to pilot users in July.
“However, due to the COVID-19 pandemic, the NCUA postponed the wider rollout,” NCUA said. “Instead, the agency began an expanded pilot this month with over 100 additional NCUA and state supervisory agency users and 17 credit unions to gain additional feedback.”
Despite the delay, NCUA said the project remains on schedule for a phased rollout starting in 2021.
NASCUS Response
“NASCUS appreciates the NCUA board’s recognition of the need to work closely with state supervisory authorities in implementing MERIT,” said NASCUS CEO Lucy Ito. “NASCUS and state credit union regulators look forward to greater consultation and coordination during the extended pilot program to assure a smooth transition from AIRES to MERIT for state agencies, NCUA, all examiners, and state-chartered credit unions upon implementation.”