CUSO Magazine

This post was originally published on ChipFilson.com. Recently, I contacted the Library of Congress (LOC) to see if they had copies of Report on Credit Unions. This monthly printed publication started in January 1957 and continued through the mid 1980s. Here is what the librarian found in the search of their records: “I am sending you the title page of the Report on Credit Unions published in January 1957—the only issue we have in the collection.

Photo Credit: The Ohio Credit Union League Certainly you’ve seen the classic movie, It’s a Wonderful Life, starring Jimmy Stewart and Donna Reed. If you haven’t, you should. The reason it’s just as relevant in July as when the film usually airs (during the holidays) is that it’s a credit union story (of sorts). There’s a lot going on in the movie, but at the heart of it is George Bailey, a dreamer who is forced to take over his father’s struggling Building and Loan in the town of Bedford Falls.

The National Credit Union Administration announced that it has awarded $3.47 million through its expanded Community Development Revolving Loan Fund (CDRLF) grants program. The grants were awarded to 97 low-income designated (LID) credit unions. Despite cuts to other government programs in 2025, NCUA assured credit unions last November that the program would operate as usual. Of the 97 LIDs that were awarded funds, 18 were first-time applicants.

This article was originally published on ChipFilson.com. If Senate hearings proceed as planned and Trump’s nominee for the next NCUA chair is approved, last week’s board meeting will have been Hauptman’s final time as NCUA’s solo leader. As he departs, the NCUA situation is like a suitcase without a handle or wheels. The agency is being led by a single person, not the prescribed board. Its operating capacity has been reduced by a DOGE-induced, staff-designed elimination of 20% of its workforce.

CU*Answers held its 2026 Annual Leadership Conference and Stockholders Meeting on June 17th in downtown Grand Rapids, Michigan. The event brought together credit union leadership from across the country for a briefing on the organization’s overall direction and major projects for the coming year. This year’s conference theme was “Prepping the Laboratory”. The event marked the fifth hosted by Geoff Johnson, who has served as the organization’s CEO since October 2021.

Are you taking this opportunity to educate your members on which type of card is better suited for their needs? Most members do not know the right card to use and when. They simply grab whatever card is closest, easiest, or they know has available funds and swipe (or tap) away to process the transaction. It is really up to the credit unions to assist with educating the members on when to use what card and the benefits of using the card at the right time, to make sure they get the most out of them.

The Credit Union Board Modernization Act, which would alter the required amount of board member meetings from once per month to 6 per year, has passed the Senate as of Monday night, and now heads back to the House for another vote.

American writer Dale Carnegie once said, “Inaction breeds doubt and fear. Action breeds confidence and courage.” I was talking with someone recently about how so many people struggle with inaction. They struggle to just…start. A new business, a new project, a new hobby, a new goal… Not because they’re incapable. Not because they’re lazy. But because they think motivation is supposed to come first. But that’s backwards. People think motivation is a feeling.

Green means go. And stay. And grow. Ten years is a long time in advertising. Clients come and go. Relationships drift. Markets shift. Eventually, the work gets comfortable, which is another way of saying it gets worse. That’s not what’s happened with Idaho Central Credit Union (ICCU) and its advertising partner. What happened instead is rare: a decade-long partnership that’s kept getting better over time. ICCU is now ranked among the top three credit unions in the country by J.D. Power.

AI can answer financial questions, but it can’t understand why you’re asking them. A man sits down with his financial professional and asks what appears to be a straightforward question: “Do I have enough life insurance?” An AI system can calculate income replacement needs, estimate future expenses, and compare policy options in seconds. What it can’t see is that the man’s father died unexpectedly when he was young.