The Garage Versus the Safe
By Ron Daly I have a garage attached to my house. There's a door that slips into the kitchen and a workbench, and just enough space for my two cars. I keep just about everything [...]
News Archives
Bank Failures: 25 Things Everyone with a Bank Account Needs to Know
By Patrick Russo A bank failure regularly occurs when a bank’s assets become less valuable than its liabilities. The value of an institution’s assets can diminish for a number of reasons, including an [...]
Debit Card Interchange Fee Ruling Could Impact Reward Checking
by. Ken Tumlin A federal district court judge on Wednesday overturned a Federal Reserve rule capping interchange fees that banks receive on debit card purchases. According to the Los Angeles Times: "In a scathing opinion [...]
ChexSystems Coming Under Scrutiny?
by. Henry Meier Is your credit union violating the law simply by reviewing the banking history of potential members? This is not the type of existential question my compliance-warped mind ponders for the heck of [...]
How Credit Unions Are Reaching Out to Gen Y
Financial institutions know that in order to grow successfully, they need to have a strong presence among America’s youth. NerdWallet’s recent contest encouraged credit unions across the country to dream up innovative new [...]
How to Manage Your Investment Portfolio’s Safety, Liquidity, and Yield
The slogan “Safety First” can usually be found on a sign hanging in a manufacturing plant or construction site, but it’s just as appropriate on your desk as an investment officer of your credit [...]
In Business, Don’t Mistake “Goodness” for Competence
In a 1935 publication titled Morals in Business, Edward Filene taught that there are many good people in business, but there are fewer good business people. Filene's legacy of philanthropy, decisive role in pioneering the [...]
Solving the Brand Puzzle for Credit Unions: An Interview with Robert Michaud
Many credit unions struggle to understand the nebulous idea that is “branding” and how it applies to their business beyond creating a logo and some basic marketing materials. Indeed, many credit unions may not even [...]
Watch out for the eStatement Police!
by Ron Daly Strangest thing happened to me. I got stopped by the eStatement Police on the way home for work the other day. They pulled me over to make sure that I could view [...]
Seven Things Credit Unions Don’t Do In Social Media
Social media consultants have been offering free advice to financial institutions for years, but there are just some things banks and credit unions still don’t do very well. Here’s seven of them. By [...]
How to Protect a Prepaid Card
by. Konrad Christensen Prepaid debit cards are accepted wherever debit cards are; they protect a customer’s privacy; they are a great tool to help with budgeting. However, all that privacy and ease of use [...]
“Make It So”: A Lesson From Picard
“Star Trek: The Next Generation” fans have already recognized the catch phrase above that was so aptly used by Captain Jean-Luc Picard. Whenever Picard, as commanding officer, had made a decision he usually signaled that [...]
The Revenue Power of Emerging Financial Services
by. Jim Marous With interest rates remaining low and traditional fee income impacted by recent government regulations, banks and credit unions are increasingly looking for new ways to make up the shortfall in revenues. Despite [...]
2013 Top 15 Next Top Credit Union Execs Revealed!
After an intense and exciting public voting phase, we are please to present the Top 15! We had more than 4,000 votes for the initial vote phase of the 2013 CUES Next Top Credit [...]
Gearing Up for More Home Equity Lending
With housing prices trending upward after several years of steady decline in many areas across the country, more homeowners are now in a positive equity position. Since other economic factors like unemployment rates are also [...]