By Frank J. Diekmann
While CUToday.info had more coverage than any other publication coming out of CUNA’s Governmental Affairs Conference, even with the extensive reporting we didn’t get to everything. So, here is some of what you might have missed on everything from the war in Ukraine to hippopotamuses to testing employee loyalty to tattoos to inspiring words.
In absolutely no particular order:
From the Front & Center
The war in Ukraine was front and center during much of the meeting. CUNA’s GAC was held as the Russian invasion marked its first anniversary, and representatives of Ukraine and Ukrainian-American credit unions appeared several times during the meeting and at various events. That included a surprise visit by Ukraine’s Ambassador to the United States at a World Council event, a meeting at the Ukrainian embassy with a credit union delegation, and a session offering an update from Ukraine, including one person who continues to work in the country.
In addition, during a session at the Underground Collision event held prior to GAC and sponsored by Mitchell Stankovic, Poland’s Rafal Matusiak said of Russia, “They continue to call it a special operation, supposedly to fight fascism. The record is hypocrisy has been broken once again. In this, the Russians have no equal.”
Later in his remarks, referring to a foundation that is raising funds to help Poland’s CU help Ukrainian refugees, he stated, “Together, we implement this important project and help kick Russian ass.” You can read more about the ass kicking here.
Shattering the Silence
There are approximately a dozen Ukrainian-American credit unions in the United States. At a World Council event, Anatoli Murha of Selfreliance Credit Union in Philadelphia said, “One of my favorite words in Ukrainian is kolo. It means circle. A circle brings people together and specifically it brings friends together. Tonight, we gather as friends to amplify and support credit unions in Ukraine. They provide essential financing, but more importantly they provide financing in communities where nonstop missile attacks and air raid sirens shatter the silence.”
Murha, whose grandparents fled Ukraine, added, “Ukrainians are resilient and mobilized across the ocean and around the globe. Ukraine must win. Ukraine will win. How can you help? Consider a donation. Many of you have donated. Last but not least, plan to visit Ukraine. You will feel a determined and brave energy of a nation that speaks and lives the truth.”
And That’s the Word
The World Council event, by the way, was held at Planet Word, which describes itself as an immersive language experience and “voice-activated museum” (it says it’s the first). At right is what the inside of the elevator looked like.
TGI Friday, Meet DEI Tuesday
This year’s GAC marked its first-ever DEI Tuesday. Coverage can be found here.
What the Hippos Are Telling Us
Lois Kitsch, who since retiring from the World Council of Credit Unions has been championing the creation of the ACCOSCA Academy in Africa, was on hand for a reception in Washington aimed at raising more funds for the initiative. Kitsch left Africa for GAC and shared this story of something she witnessed just before arriving in Washington.
“This past week we were in Kenya…and we were walking down the beach and saw a herd of hippos running across the beach and into the ocean. This is very unusual,” said Kitsch. “Hippos want fresh water. There is no water. The rivers are drying up. They don’t go to the ocean. But there was no choice, because the water was gone. The drought has hit east Africa in the worst way possible. So, what does that have to do with credit unions? Everything. In Africa, credit unions have no choice but to tackle and take on global development issues, such as climate change.”
The Impact Ratio
Meanwhile, in separate remarks to Mitchell Stankovic’s Underground Shattered meeting the next day, Kitsch challenged her audience by saying, “Let’s stop measuring ourselves by our asset size and number of members we have. It is time we start to think about the impact we have.”
The Vice President & the Mattress
George Ombada, the executive director of the African trade association ACCOSCA, related a story of meeting with the vice president of Liberia, who shared that when it comes to her finances she keeps her money under the mattress, as she lacks knowledge around finances and faith in financial institutions. What was supposed to be a 10-minute meeting with the vice president turned into a 30-minute meeting as she probed for more information on credit unions. Separately, in speaking to the issue of poverty, Ombada related how in Ghana it requires two years of rent payments in advance in order to rent a home.
Let’s Chat(GPT)
The introduction of the AI-based chatbot ChatGPT has quickly spread in credit unions and their vendors. While it has been used for both humorous and serious reasons (as I wrote about earlier here), at GAC and at related events the subject came up often.
Jay Mossman, president/CEO with Akuvo, was among several people who noted the company is using the technology to write big pieces of code, and at a very low price. Later, during a breakfast hosted by Filene, Executive Director Mark Meyer challenged ChatGPT to offer an outline of his remarks to the meeting, and he pointed out the technology largely nailed it, although it lacked context and “color.” And vendors and CUs with whom CUToday.info spoke said they are also experimenting with ChatGPT for everything from marketing messages to press releases to text alerts.
Doing Double Duty
During the always interesting Underground Collision meeting, Keith Sultemeier, president and CEO of Kinecta FCU, shared how as a security measure six years ago the credit union began phishing its own employees, something it continues to do. Initially, it found 17%-19% of employees were fooled and clicked on links they should not have, but recent tests have shown that number is now around 2%. But as Sultemeier reminded, “It only takes one.”
That led fellow panelist Stephen Bohanon, chief product and sales officer with Alkami, to say his company also employed phishing, but with a twist: “We started doing job offers in the link so we could find out who was loyal.”
The Weapons Race
Later, Bohanon observed, “The bad guys have weapons now that can easily outmatch anything you can do.” He shared the story of one credit union that has a huge market share in a state that has one area code and which was hit by a massive cyber attack in which residents across the state were phished by what appeared to be a message from the credit union. The scammers had even built a mirror website of the credit union's. “Traffic was coming in from a thousand different IP addresses across the world,” he said. “That is the kind of power that is out there.”
Greenland Invades the United States
Seeking to get Americans to better understand what the war on Ukraine by Russia means, former World Council of Credit Unions (WOCCU) CEO Brian Branch offered a different analogy during the Underground meeting, announcing that Greenland had invaded the United States. In this case, it has a population three times the U.S. and is seeking access to the Caribbean and to protect the ethnic heritage of the Minnesota Vikings, among other reasons.
Greenland was expected to roll right through the U.S., but a vigilant and determined population had stopped the invasion, with Greenland responding with “brutal treatment” of Americans and by bombing American cities.
“Boston was destroyed and occupied by the invaders. New York, Atlanta, Minneapolis and Chicago are regularly bombed, as is their critical infrastructure,” he said, adding that 25% of the U.S. population has been displaced from their homes.
In his scenario, millions flee to Canada, which sees a population increase of 20% in some of its cities.
Branch used that metaphor to describe what it’s like in Ukraine and neighboring Poland. In the latter, citizens and credit unions have opened their homes and wallets to refugees even amidst the conflict and as friction rises.
“What they are creating through the CU system, the CU heart, is the integration of and stability for these refugees,” said Branch. “This is what makes us movement and not just an industry.”
Leaving a Mark
During a video at the National Credit Union Foundation’s Herb Wegner Memorial Awards, Individual Achievement Award winner Linda Bodie of Element FCU in West Virginia was shown getting a credit union tattoo. The tattoo artist is a member of her board. But during her live remarks she acknowledged she got the tattoo for the video. “It was in the script. Literally. I agreed to do it. I said it has to be cool. Now I have my second official tattoo.” Later, Bodie asked, “How many of you have board members who can give you a tattoo? I’m going to take a chance here and say not many."
Other Notes from the Wegners
Also observed by other winners of the Individual Achievement Awards this year:
- Former World Council CEO Brian Branch, who witnessed natural disasters and even the horrors of genocide durinig his career, offered this powerful observation: “When bad things happen, credit unions step up and help build local economies. (In crises), credit unions are on the ground, very often in the middle. They can’t leave. When peace is restored credit unions help rebuild those local economies. But more importantly, credit unions help not just local economies, they help build societies. They are part of the social fabric that ties communities together.
- It was announced, by the way, that Branch has more flown more than 10-million miles during his career. I hope that qualifies for an upgrade.
- Winona Nava, CEO of Guadalupe Credit Union, said she was initially turned down when she interviewed for the CEO position. Instead, the board selected a man who had a bachelor’s degree (she was three classes short at the time). How did that work out? “He wasn't successful and he put the credit union in conservatorship and then he got to spend nine years in prison. It was a harrowing time.”
- Former CUNA President and current CEO of SchoolsFirst FCU Bill Cheney urged the audience to “Please be an evangelist for credit unions. We need you and the people who understand our impact to speak up and be heard. Tell the stories of the unique ways credit unions impact ordinary people to do extraordinary things. It is up to each of us to protect the credit union difference.”
- This year’s Wegner dinner attracted a record crowd of approximately 1,200 people. You can read full coverage of all of the award winners here.
Maybe Hold That Applause
During GAC it was announced during a general session that credit unions had grown auto lending share significantly during 2022. That brought a big round of applause from the audience. But as several people noted, including representatives of NCUA, there is some concern CUs have gotten that share by underpricing their auto loans, something that could back up and run over some CUs.
Advertising One Thing, Doing Another
During a very interesting session on the future of branches led by Raddon’s Bill Handel (you can read more here), he pointed that while Capital One has been advertising its “café” like branches and implying there is one on every corner, the fact is the bank has actually closed more branches in the last 10 years than any other institution. “What they are really trying to do is sell the relevance of their branches, especially to younger people,” he told a breakout session.
Apologizing in Advance
A breakout session on legal threats to credit unions once again drew an overflow crowd.
“I have been told this is one of the more popular sessions, and all I have to say is I’m sorry,” observed Cristina Miller, a partner with Styskal, Wiese & Melchione, LLP.
During that session attendees learned that one of the newest risks they face is litigation alleging violations of laws around “wiretapping.” That’s right, wiretapping. While it sounds like something from the cold war and rotary phones, some plaintiffs’ attorneys see a ripe opportunity to take wiretapping laws and apply them to technologies such as online chat. If you missed the story the first time and are looking for a new way to bring your day down, go here.
All You Need to Know
The change in crypto’s fortunes and values since the 2022 GAC was readily apparent in the turnout for one breakout session (which was standing room only last year, but pick a chair, any chair this year). You can read more here.
And That’s a Wrap
Plenty more occurred, of course, but this column is starting to run longer than the meeting itself, so…
Frank J. Diekmann is Cooperator in Chief of CUToday.info and can be reached at Frank@CUToday.info. Mr. Diekmann is also author of several new book, including the brand new “The Last Lyric,” a humorous satire about a murder investigation at the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame in which every line of dialogue is either a classic pop/rock song title or lyric. Available on Amazon, Apple iBook, Barnes & Noble and Smashwords. Mr. Diekmann is also author of a non-fiction compilation of the very best & worst he has seen and heard in covering more than 500 CU meetings and conferences, “501 Name Tags: How Everything You Need to Know About Business Can Be Learned at a Conference & Forgotten in the Trade Show.” It is available on Amazon, Barnes & Noble, Apple, Lulu, and Smashwords