Board Action Bulletin
Board Approves Illinois’ Request to Revise Its Member Business Lending Rule
ALEXANDRIA, Va. (April 20, 2017) – The National Credit Union Administration Board held its third open meeting of 2017 at the agency’s headquarters here today and unanimously approved one item:
- A request from the Illinois Department of Financial and Professional Regulation to revise its member business lending rule to provide parity with NCUA’s rule.
The Board also received briefings from the Chief Financial Officer on the performance of the National Credit Union Share Insurance Fund and the Temporary Corporate Credit Union Stabilization Fund.
Stabilization Fund Continues Positive Net Position
The Temporary Corporate Credit Union Stabilization Fund’s net position increased to $1.5 billion from $500 million in the year ending Dec. 31, 2016.
The increase in the Stabilization Fund's net position resulted primarily from legal recoveries and improvements in projected cash flows relating to the legacy assets that secure the NCUA Guaranteed Notes Program. A reduction of $966.8 million in the insurance loss expense and the guarantee fee income of $32.1 million contributed to the Stabilization Fund's $993.0 net income for 2016 year.
During the year, $1.7 billion of the fund’s available cash was used to complete the repayment of all outstanding Treasury borrowings.
While the Stabilization Fund’s positive net position continued during 2016, no funds are available at present to provide federally insured credit unions with an immediate rebate of assessments paid to the fund. Future changes in the economy or in the performance of the legacy assets securing the NCUA Guaranteed Notes are likely to change the value of the assets the agency can access. Only when the holders of NCUA Guaranteed Notes are paid and the fund is closed can rebates be made to credit unions.
Based on current projections, NCUA expects no future Stabilization Fund assessments to credit unions.
Created by Congress in 2009, the Stabilization Fund has reduced the impact of the costs to credit unions of resolving the corporate credit union crisis. The Stabilization Fund is set to expire in 2021, and the agency currently is studying the possible impact of closing the fund sooner.
The Chief Financial Officer’s report was based on audited information. Earlier this year, KPMG LLP, the independent firm that audits the Stabilization Fund’s financial statements, issued an unmodified, or “clean,” audit opinion of the fund for the seventh year in a row.
Share Insurance Fund Maintains Consistent Operating Trends
The Share Insurance Fund posted a net loss of $41.9 million in the first quarter of 2017, primarily due to the increase in the provision for insurance losses.
The Share Insurance Fund’s net position was $12.9 billion at the end of the first quarter, and the equity ratio was 1.26 percent. NCUA calculated the equity ratio on an insured share base of $1.0 trillion.
First-quarter investment and other income was $50.6 million. Operating expenses were $44.5 million. The provision for insurance losses increased by $48.0 million.
Overall, assets in CAMEL codes 3, 4 and 5 credit unions have decreased 68.9 percent since peaking at $205.6 billion in September 2010. Year over year, the Chief Financial Officer reported:
- The number of CAMEL codes 4 and 5 credit unions declined 9.6 percent from the first quarter of 2016 to 197 from 218.
- Assets in CAMEL codes 4 and 5 credit unions increased 21.8 percent from the first quarter of 2016 to $9.5 billion from $7.8 billion.
- The number of CAMEL code 3 credit unions declined 9.1 percent from the first quarter of 2016 to 1,102 from 1,212.
- Assets in CAMEL code 3 credit unions declined 36.6 percent from the first quarter of 2016 to $54.5 billion from $86.0 billion.
Two federally insured credit unions failed during the first quarter of 2017, compared to five in the first quarter of 2016. Total year-to-date losses associated with credit union failures are $3.7 million, compared to $4.7 million in the first quarter of 2016. Fraud was not a contributing factor in either failure in the first quarter.
The first-quarter figures are preliminary and unaudited.
Illinois Member Business Lending Rule Changes Approved
The NCUA Board approved a request from the Illinois Department of Financial and Professional Regulation to revise its member business lending rule to provide parity with NCUA’s own rule (Part 723), which was approved by the Board at its February 2016 open meeting.
Under NCUA’s member business lending rule, states that wish to have their own versions of that rule must receive Board approval. The agency’s Board unanimously approved Illinois’ member business loan rule on June 20, 2013.
The Illinois member business lending rule, available online here, becomes effective May 1, 2017 and will apply to both federally insured and privately insured credit unions chartered in the state.
NCUA tweets all open Board meetings live. Follow @TheNCUA on Twitter, and access Board Action Memorandums and NCUA rule changes at www.ncua.gov. NCUA also live streams, archives and posts videos of open Board meetings online.