The federal regulator of credit unions released its 2018 annual report Wednesday, highlighting last year’s share insurance fund distribution to credit unions, ongoing efforts to modernize the examination process, federal credit union (FCU) chartering and field-of-membership (FOM) rule changes, and other developments.
“The annual report highlights a very productive year for the NCUA,” said J. Mark McWatters, chairman of the National Credit Union Administration (NCUA) Board. “Along with the largest Share Insurance Fund dividend ever paid, we took significant steps to streamline our regulatory structure, make the agency’s operations more efficient, and expand access to affordable financial services.”
NCUA says that it undertook several initiatives in 2018 to reduce the regulatory burden and improve its operations over the long-term. The most signification actions were:
- Distributing $735.7 million in Share Insurance Fund dividends to more than 5,700 eligible institutions — the largest distribution in the fund’s history;
- Approving five substantive changes to the NCUA’s regulatory structure that balanced safety and soundness with regulatory relief;
- Creating a blueprint for future regulatory reform and a mechanism for the public to view progress in meeting these goals;
- Completing the last phases of the agency’s 2017 realignment by closing two regional offices and moving to a new, three-region structure at the start of 2019; and
- Making sizeable investments in new technology and systems that will allow the agency to carry out its examination and supervision program more efficiently and with a reduced regulatory footprint in the future.
The report addresses the agency’s efforts to meet its strategic goals, contains the audited financial statements of the agency’s four funds (all received “clean” audit opinions), and reports on compliance with federal financial management guidelines, regulations, and relevant laws, and data on credit union financial performance during the year.