NCUA Boardroom. (Photo: NCUA)
NCUA board members on Thursday approved a final rule that changes the asset threshold for assigning federally insured credit unions to the Office of National Examinations and Supervision (ONES).
Under the final rule, credit unions with assets between $10 billion and $15 billion will be assigned to the appropriate Regional Office for supervision. Those credit unions with $10 billion in assets that are currently supervised by ONES will continue to be supervised by that office. According to the NCUA, ONES will supervise credit unions that cross the $15 billion threshold. These changes will be effective on Jan. 1, 2023.
"With the rapid balance sheet growth across the credit union system since the onset of the pandemic, especially for the largest of credit unions, recalibrating the threshold was always a question of when, not if," Chairman Todd Harper said. "Approval of the final rule is a significant acknowledgement of the industry's ongoing maturation and the evolving role the NCUA plays in supervising and insuring our nation's largest credit unions. This change provides for new development opportunities for examiners, providing a smoother transition for consumer credit unions that will eventually transfer to ONES' supervision, and enhancing knowledge sharing and expertise between ONES and regional staff."
Proposed Cyber Incident Rule
In a 3-0 vote, board members also approved a proposed rule to require federally insured credit unions to notify the NCUA within 72 hours after "they reasonably believe a reportable cyber incident has occurred."
According to the proposed rule, credit unions must report a "cyber incident that leads to a substantial loss of confidentiality, integrity or availability of a member information system as a result of the exposure of sensitive data, disruption of vital member services, or that has a serious impact on the safety and resiliency of operational systems and processes."
Harper said, "NCUA board approval for issuing the proposed rule before us today is a critical step to increasing cybersecurity awareness and protection within the financial system. Federally insured credit unions are not only the system's first line of defense, but they are also the NCUA's eyes and ears. When credit unions report these types of incidents, they may very well be helping to keep our nation secure from similar cyberattacks elsewhere."
Once published in the Federal Register, comments will be open on the final rule proposal for 60 days.
Return to Office
Before beginning discussions of Thursday's agenda items, Chairman Harper announced that the board will have its first in-person board meeting in September after more than two years of virtual meetings.
Harper appeared very happy with the news that they were returning to the office, because "30 months has been a very long time." Vice Chairman Kyle Hauptman and Board Member Rodney Hood appeared equally as happy with the news.
In fact, since Hauptman was confirmed by the Senate in late 2020, he has never attended an in-person NCUA board meeting.
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Michael Ogden
Editor-in-Chief at CU Times. To connect, email at [email protected]. As Editor-in-Chief of CU Times since 2016, Michael Ogden has led the editorial team in all aspects of content strategy and execution, including the creation of the publication’s exclusive and proprietary research database of the credit union industry’s economic landscape. Under Michael’s leadership, CU Times has successfully shifted to an all-digital editorial product with new focuses on the payments, fraud, lending and regulatory beats. Most recently, he introduced a data-focused editorial product for subscribers that breaks down credit union issues into hard data, allowing for a deeper and more factual narrative for readers. In 2024, he launched the "Shared Accounts With CU Times" podcast, which offers a fresh, inside-the-newsroom perspective through interviews with leaders from the credit union industry and the regulatory world. He dives into pressing credit union issues, while revealing the personalities working behind-the-scenes to push the credit union world forward. His background includes years as a radio and TV anchor/reporter and a public relations and digital/social media manager, where he covered the food and music industries, as well as cooperatives and credit unions. Over the years, he has launched numerous exclusive video and podcast series, including a successful series of interactive backstage interviews with musicians at music festivals, showcasing his social media and live streaming production skills.
