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Credit Union Times

JANUARY 13, 2021 | VOL. 32 | NO. 1 | CUTIMES.COM

Must Reads

EMPLOYEE BENEFITS

Making a Fresh Start in 2021If there’s anything we’ve learnedfrom 2020, it’s to expect the unexpected. We saw companiesacross the U.S. adapt to a myriadof pandemic-driven realities inthe workplace, ranging from stafflayoffs to more employees working virtually than ever before.

Those changes have compelled employers to rethinkbenefit offerings and rediscoverthat showing empathy and demonstrating greater recognitionof employee needs goes a longway. Looking ahead into 2021,that same willingness to activelylisten, objectively evaluate andcourse-correct as needed willbe paramount. Here are four keytrends coming out of 2020 thatwill benefit both executives andHR professionals this year.

Demonstrating Value

Employers should take a holisticview of their benefits program,rather than looking at individual components. It was a toughyear for many organizations, soabsorbing the costs associatedwith adding more benefits maybe out of reach for some. Oneway to provide more value without added cost is to help educateemployees on all that the currentbenefits provide, both core andvoluntary.

“We are seeing clients puttingmore emphasis on the wholepackage, not just the individualpieces,” Brian Billings, directorof client management at ARAGLegal Insurance, said. Y15

Uncertainty,
Change
Sweeps
D.C.

DAVID BAUMANNdbaumann@cutimes.com

very presidential election causes indigestionin our nation’s capital.Who’s going to runthe agencies?

How is the new president goingto get along with Congress?

Is my job safe?

It’s enough to cause a run onRolaids.

But this year, the continuingcoronavirus crisis adds a layerthat makes any predictions farmore difficult – and that includespredictions about how Washington, D.C. deals with credit unions.

And while congressional committees may want to take a freshlook at how the federal government interacts with financialinstitutions, there may be hugechanges at the two federal agencies with the mostpower over creditunions – the NCUAand the CFPB.

“I do thinkthere’s a lot of uncertainty,” CarrieHunt, NAFCU’sEVP of government affairs andgeneral counsel, said. She addedthat in addition to the usual unsettled feeling, there’s an Y17REGULATION

Hunt

Fighting CardFraud

Learn to avoid costly
missteps. Y11
Adapting to a
New Reality
Take a hard look
at your digital
journey. Y7
FOCUSREPORT:
LEADERSHIP IN 2021

Strong leaders have always been critical to the success of CUs,but they’re even more important amid uncertainty. In this FocusReport, CEOs share the leadership strategies they’re leveragingas the health and economic crisis continues into 2021. Y6

redit unions did better than expected in

2020, but still lost alittle ground in autoloans and mortgage originations.

Car loans accounted for abouta third of credit union portfolios and real estate accounted forabout half.

Credit unions and banks have
been capturing a smaller portion
of auto loans because of captives,
especially for new cars, and from
online disruptors like Carvana,
which both sells and finances
used cars.

Based on Fed G- 19 and NCUAnational data, credit unions held31% of outstanding auto loansas of Sept. 30, down from 31.1%in June and 31.7% in September2019.

Car lending has been slowing
for more than five years, while first
mortgage portfolios have been
rising since mid-2019, measuring
12-month changes in portfolio
balances.

Credit unions are gaining aslightly higher share of the national portfolio of first mortgages, but getting a smaller bite oforiginations.

Estimates revised Dec. 21 bythe Mortgage Bankers Associationshowed first mortgage originations by all lenders topped $1.08trillion for the three months ending Sept. 30 – the first time