NCUA's Harper Drafting Rule for Succession Planning
The NCUA chair says many mergers are being forced to occur because no one is ready to take over when a CEO retires.
NCUA Chairman Todd Harper said he is preparing a new rule to address the failure of many credit union boards to plan for how they will replace their key executives when they retire — “especially in smaller credit unions.”
Harper, in prepared remarks for the African American Credit Union Coalition’s online Town Hall Nov. 12, said the pace of mergers was slowed by the COVID-19 pandemic, but is picking up steam. He said the increase in mergers reflects a decades-old trend among all types of financial institutions, but some credit unions have no path forward when leaders retire.
“Overall, about one in five credit unions lack CEO succession plans,” Harper said. “Some data indicates that a large proportion of credit union CEOs and executives are baby boomers who will be part of a retirement wave that has already started.
“With these retirements, flat budgets and tight labor markets made even tighter in the wake of the pandemic, there is a real need for credit unions of all sizes to focus on succession planning, especially if we want to curtail credit union mergers,” he said.
Harper said directors should raise the issue of succession planning in their board discussions, and that they should review current policies or formally adopt new ones.
“Additionally, I am working with my fellow board members and the NCUA staff on a potential rule related to succession planning,” he said. “If we want to ensure small credit unions can thrive in the marketplace and in their communities, then we need to address the lack of succession planning within the industry.”
In the first nine months of 2021, the NCUA approved 117 mergers, up from 93 in the first nine months of 2020. Among the 43 mergers approved in the third quarter, in three cases the NCUA cited “inability to obtain officials” as its official reason in its Merger Activity and Insurance Report.
The report showed seven credit union mergers were approved in the third quarter because of their poor financial condition, three because of a lack of sponsor support and one because of lack of growth. The remaining 29 mergers were approved to allow expanded services — all of which were for credit unions with less than $70 million in assets.