NCUA Board meeting held on Feb. 27, 2025.
The NCUA Board held its second open meeting of the year and the first meeting with newly-appointed Chairman Kyle Hauptman at the helm. Board members received a financial update on the National Credit Union Share Insurance Fund for the fourth quarter of 2024. The report highlighted continued strength in the fund’s financial standing.
Before the first agenda item, Hauptman addressed the NCUA staff to express his understanding of how chaotic it’s been for federal agencies recently with several directives coming from President Donald Trump.
“So as last few weeks, there have been a flurry of Executive Orders affecting the federal workforce, including us. Some of those directives may bring changes to you. All of us at this table understand that change and uncertainty can be challenging for a number of parties.”
Hauptman added that the NCUA Board members are “assessing how these announcements may affect the NCUA, our operations, regulatory structures and our workforce.”
He said, “So let's continue to stay focused on our mission and we, the Board, we'll continue to support your work as we navigate any changes together.”
While there has been speculation over workforce reductions at the NCUA due to President Trump’s Executive Orders, officials have not confirmed any details about the numbers of NCUA employees who might be impacted.
Board Chair Todd Harper did address possible employee reductions more specifically in his comments about the health of the Share Insurance Fund, stating that it could be negatively impacted if the NCUA must reduce the number of examiners and supervisors.
The Share Insurance Fund reported a net income of $78.6 million, with total assets reaching $22.3 billion. Additionally, the fund generated $145.9 million in total income, bringing the equity ratio to 1.30% as of the fourth quarter.
“There is a lot of good news here,” Hauptman said. “I’m pleased to see the Share Insurance Fund remains strong. Reductions in unrealized losses, increased interest revenue and capitalization deposit adjustments throughout the year helped to increase the Share Insurance Fund’s assets by $924.6 million. However, credit unions and the NCUA Board will need to continue to monitor economic and market conditions. Patience, flexibility and sound balance sheet management will be vital in the year ahead.”
Harper added, “Today’s presentation additionally underscores that the NCUA’s current supervision program is working as intended. It also illustrates why we must maintain strong supervision of federally insured credit unions. And, any future adjustments to the agency staffing levels should not come at the expense of sacrificing safety and soundness, compliance and fair lending examinations.
“We must recognize that if exam and supervision staffing levels are lowered, we may need to increase the Share Insurance Fund’s normal operating level to maintain sufficient reserves for potential losses. That’s because less frequent supervisory contacts, less comprehensive exams, and less oversight will likely lead to more credit union failures and increased Share Insurance Fund losses,” Harper said.
Additional findings from the report showed positive trends. The number of composite CAMELS code 3 credit unions declined from 730 to 715, with assets decreasing from $189.8 billion to $188.8 billion. Similarly, CAMELS codes 4 and 5 credit unions dropped from 138 to 135, with total assets declining from $19.1 billion to $18.5 billion.
Despite strong financials, the fund absorbed approximately $2.03 million in losses due to three federally insured credit union failures in 2024.
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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.
