Mike Welch's July 25th publisher's column on the lack of controversy at credit union conferences was right on. In my personal opinion, the reason so many conferences are now "sterile" and civilized, with less spirited discussion of issues, is because volunteers are disappearing from leadership roles and the paid staff...

WASHINGTON-The U.S. Secret Service Financial Crimes Division, a division of the Treasury Department, issued a memo to the Office of the Comptroller of the Currency to be distributed to all member institutions on fraud prevention with the issuance of the tax rebate checks. The memo warns financial institutions that cash...

Looking back five years ago finds credit unions able to offer their employees 401(k) retirement plans. "When we realized Congress, and particularly House Ways and Means Chairman Bill Archer (R-Texas), were definitely intent this year on moving ahead with 401(k)s for nonprofits, our staff and many leagues jumped right in...

NEW YORK - CarDay Inc. here, an auto buying service that combines bricks with clicks, has partnered with AutoValueCenter, Butler, Pa., a car buying firm that assists CUs in providing financing for autos bought at dealerships, to bring members more access to purchase certified used cars using credit union financing....

TALLAHASSEE, FL - Southeast Corporate Federal Credit Union has announced a number of new senior staff hires. They include the following: Kay Moon, Senior Vice President - Correspondent Services; Barry Haddix, Vice President - Information Technology; Lisa Coffey, Vice President - Item Processing; and Jason Norton, Vice President/ Marketing. Interestingly,...

HOUSTON, Texas - The Credit Union of Texas recently unveiled its new interactive Web site at www.cuoftexas.org. A variety of online services are an integral part of the design including home banking, wireless banking, bill payment, auto-market sales and leasing, several calculators, as well as online applications for loans, membership,...

WAUKESHA, Wis. - Call_Solutions has acquired Advanced Response Marketing, Inc. (ARM) of Dallas, Texas, a marketing agency specializing in direct mail campaigns for Fortune 1000 companies. Its clients include American Airlines, Dillards Department Stores, Federated Stores, GE Capital Corporation, The Home Depot, and others. According to Call_Solutions, this acquisition helps...

In a recent column ("NAFCU's Strengths and Weaknesses"), Mike Welch makes the point that NAFCU is a direct membership organization, but he then goes on to add, "credit unions are members, not leagues as in the case of NAFCU's rival CU trade group CUNA." As chairman of the CUNA Renewal...