BASEL, Switzerland —The World Council of Credit Unions (WOCCU) was joined by representatives from Australia, Canada, Poland, and the United States to make a sweep through three countries and to visit with key international standard setting bodies.
According to WOCCU, the group also visited key influential European regulatory bodies to urge support for the credit union cooperative model, noting the important role that it plays in accomplishing financial inclusion around the world.
WOCCU said it has been active with the G20 urging “further direction to the international standard setting bodies to work more closely with national-level regulators on proportionality, which allows for proper tailoring of rules to maximize the benefit of the cooperative model in serving rural, underserved, and marginalized communities.” The World Council noted international standards are often intended to apply to large, internationally active banks.
‘Lack of Diversity’
“Failure to allow for smaller, less complex financial institutions can lead to a lack of diversity in the marketplace that is essential for ensuring access to affordable and responsible financial services for all,” WOCCU stated.
This week's visits included the International Sustainability Standards Board (ISSB), the Basel Committee on Banking Supervision, the Financial Stability Board (FSB), the Organization for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD), the European Central Bank, and others, the organization said.
According to WOCCU, the meeting with the Basel Committee, members praised the recent issuance of High-level Considerations on Proportionality, with guidance on tailoring the Basel III Framework.
Caution Expressed
“However, members cautioned that more still needs to be done to work with national level regulators to follow through with implementing rules that allow the benefits of the cooperative model to increase financial inclusion,” WOCCU said.
Proportionality is the key to enabling the cooperative, member-owned model to thrive, WOCCU added.
“We are urging close cooperation by the international standard setting bodies to help create an environment that encourages creating national rulebooks that support our community focused model,” said Andrew T. Price, senior VP of advocacy/general counsel with World Council. “While it takes some effort, the benefits of this work advancing financial inclusion are clear. We are pleased that our message this week is being received and acted upon by these influential bodies.”
Respective Views Shared
WOCCU said members of the Customer-Owned Banking Association (COBA) from Australia, the Canadian Credit Union Association (CCUA) of Canada, CUNA, and the National Association of Cooperative Savings and Credit Unions (NACSCU) of Poland, and representatives from credit unions and customer-owned banks conveyed their experience from their respective countries.
The World Council noted that in November of 2022 the G20 adopted the G20 Bali Leaders’ Declaration, wherein it reaffirmed support for World Council-advocated focus on financial inclusion.
“The Leaders’ Declaration advanced the financial inclusion of vulnerable and underserved segments of society by endorsing several policies, including the G20 2020 Financial Inclusion Action plan,” WOCCU said. “These policies support the adoption of enabling proportionate legal and regulatory frameworks.”
WOCCU said it and its members will continue to advance its advocacy for national-level supervisors to embrace the proportionality embedded in the international standards and tailor regulations to increase the ability of the cooperative model to increase financial inclusion.
The Participants
Participants included Andrew Price, World Council; Jeff Guthrie, Canadian Credit Union Association-Canada; Joe Thomas, Credit Union National Association-United States; Michael Lawrence, Customer Owned Banking Association-Australia; Pawel Pelc, National Association of Cooperative Savings and Credit Unions-Poland; Steve Laidlaw, Heritage and People’s Choice Credit Union-Australia; Stuart Hall, Newcastle Greater Mutual Group-Australia; Nathan Campbell, IMB Bank-Australia; and Patrick Ashkettle, Bank Australia.
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