Subtitle this show: All You Want to Know about CUSOs but Didn’t Know to Ask.
On the show is Michael Heller, an associate with Messick Lauer & Smith, a leading firm in CUSO law.
Heller and I had started talking at the CU 2.0 Live event in Fountain Hills AZ and it was only natural to capture the conversation on tape for distribution as a podcast.
Here, Heller talks about how CUSOs have evolved to serve new, different needs at credit unions and he also discusses several possible new regulatory initiatives floated by NCUA.
Along the way we discuss the emergence of new fintech focused CUSOs.
A take away is that CUSOs are of vital importance to credit unions as they strive to stay competitive with big banks. For the record there are around 1100 CUSOs, with about $4.6 billion in invested capital. That’s per NCUA.
NCUA also requires that a CUSO “primarily” serve credit unions and their members and Heller talks about what that term means.
He also talks about what NCUA says are “permissible activities” for a CUSO which NCUA itemizes at some length. A check cashing service probably qualities, a tattoo parlor doesn’t.
