Newsflash Jan. 2, 2013

CDBANewsflash - Low Rez For Email 2

January 2, 2013
 

Member News

United Bank Celebrates the Retirement of Two Long-Serving Bank Employees
Atmore News
(1-2-13)

A reception was held at United Bank for retirees Nancy Everette Helton and P. D. Pollard Thursday, December, 13, at the Atmore Main Branch, where friends and coworkers wished them well after more than 28 years of service to the bank and the community. “Today we’re celebrating a day that we all hope to work toward,” said Bob Jones, President and CEO of United Bank, at Thursday’s reception. Jones presented gifts to both as he congratulated them in front of a crowd of more than 100, including fellow bank retirees. “While it’s bittersweet, we wish Nancy and P.D. the best as they begin new chapters and new adventures,” Jones said.

BankPlus Takes on Mississippi Payday Lenders
American Banker
(January 1, 2013)

As the operators of a community bank in the state with the most payday lenders per capita (32 for every 100,000 people), executives at BankPlus in Belzoni, Miss., are characteristically appalled at the exorbitant rates that payday lenders charge. But uncharacteristically for a bank, BankPlus decided four years ago to compete with these payday lenders. Now it successfully offers a small-dollar loan product to thousands of people, with significantly better terms and outcomes. "The idea was to create a program to assist anyone caught in the payday lending cycle, but also to serve the underbanked who seek to enter the commercial banking system," says Bill Ray, the president and CEO of $2.3 billion-asset BankPlus.
 

Of Interest

New Rules on Debit-Card Processing Start to Pinch Small Banks and Credit Unions
Washington Post
(12-29-12) 

Community banks and credit unions are reporting lower debit-card processing revenue as a result of financial reform laws, sparking concerns that they may be forced to impose new fees on customers to offset their losses. Their experience stood in contrast to new reports published by the Federal Trade Commission and the Government Accountability Office, which suggest that a provision meant to protect small banks from debit-card reform has indeed shielded them from any significant losses in revenue. But community bank and credit union executives say the government reports are premature and don’t necessarily reflect the impact on their businesses. “The fees that the credit card processors pass on as revenue to banks like ours have definitely gotten smaller,” Denise Stokes, senior vice president of Sandy Spring Bank in Olney, said in an interview. “Those companies took a hit when revenue dropped for the large banks, so they passed some of that loss on to us in the form of lower rates on processing fees. Our loss hasn’t been huge, not as high as what the large banks have been hit with, but still, it’s been significant.”

Federal Trade Commission Study Finds That Debit Card Fee Reform Did Not Affect Small Banks
Federal Trade Commission
(12-24-12)

In 2010, Congress passed the Dodd-Frank (Act) which, among other things, amended the Electronic Fund Transfer Act (EFTA) to restrict interchange fees and to prohibit exclusive networks for debit card transactions. The Senate Appropriations Committee asked whether the Federal Trade Commission has identified any evidence that payment card network companies have taken steps to diminish the ability of small banks and credit unions to successfully compete with large financial institutions in the debit card issuance market, and if any such steps have been taken by the card network companies in coordination or collusion with large financial institutions. The report finds that, to date, the FTC has not uncovered evidence that this type of conduct is occurring and thus concludes that small banks are not being harmed by "swipe fee" reform.

Pilot Financial Index for Social Investment Unveiled
The Guardian
(12-21-12)

A pilot is underway to test the world's first financial index for social investment. Described as a potential "Bloomberg for social investment" by Sir Ronald Cohen, the index is backed by the City Bridge Trust, Big Society Capital, the Cabinet Office and RBS. Karl H Richter, co-founder of Engaged Investments, the organisation behind the pilot, explained that the ultimate goal is to create "a distinctive asset class" for social investment. The market for social impact investment is forecast to reach £1bn in the UK by 2016 (Boston Consulting Group), and $1tn globally by 2020 (JP Morgan), but its current lack of classification is a barrier for mainstream investors. "The traditional push back is 'we love the idea, but we are heavily regulated with fiduciary duties and compliance requirements and we cannot invest money without robust benchmark data,'" said Richter. "So we're providing that data ... a long-term aspirational goal might be to see index-tracking funds and exchange traded funds, based on the index."

 

Jobs

Center for Financial Services Innovation - Business Support Associate (Chicago, IL)
CFSI is seeking an experienced Business Support Associate to join our team. This position is responsible for supporting Advisory Services programs and interfacing with financial services organizations and other entities in the underserved consumer marketplace. This position will serve as principal internal and external operational contact for Advisory Services businesses, working closely with peers to ensure the operational success of core CFSI businesses and ultimately leading to improved financial outcomes for financially underserved consumers. Full details available here. 

Enterprise Community Partners - Program Director, Advisory Services (Columbia, MD & Washington, DC)
The Program Director will perform and coordinate project management and technical assistance (TA) tasks under the direction of an Advisory Services Director. The goal of the program is to improve the capacity, outcomes, and impacts of community development programs nationwide. For specific TA assignments, the Program Director will serve as a project manager supporting TA team leaders and members and may provide technical assistance as appropriate. The successful candidate will be self-motivated and have strong interpersonal skills. He or she will have demonstrated skills and experience with project management, working with teams and independently, and attention to detail. Experience with affordable housing and community development is required and knowledge of CPD programs and federal regulations is highly desirable. The position will be based temporarily in Columbia, MD; however, will be located permanently in Washington, DC as of Spring 2013. Full details available here. 

D2D Fund - Innovation Strategist (Allston, MA)
D2D is looking for an Innovation Strategist to help design, test, and scale D2D's financial product innovations. As an integral part  of the D2D team, the Innovation Strategist will support multiple D2D initiatives. The ideal candidate is self-motivated, hard-working, detail-oriented, and able to work in an entrepreneurial environment, taking ownership of various projects, tasks, and/or ideas simultaneously. The candidate must be dedicated to the larger cause of D2D’s mission of improving the lives of financially vulnerable Americans. The candidate must be willing to take on problems as they arise, recognizing the needs of a small organization. This position is open immediately. Some domestic travel is required. Please send cover letter and resume as well as any inquires to  resumes@d2dfund.org. Full details available here. 

Fifth Avenue Committee & Neighbors Helping Neighbors - Homeownership Counselor (Brookly, NY)
Fifth Avenue Committee (FAC) is an award winning, 34-year-old South Brooklyn based non-profit community development corporation whose mission is to advance economic and social justice. FAC develops and manages affordable housing and community facilities, creates economic opportunities and ensures access to economic stability, organizes residents and workers, offers student-centered adult education, and combats displacement caused by gentrification.  Neighbors Helping Neighbors (NHN) recently became an affiliate of the Fifth Avenue Committee, and has received funding to increase homeownership counseling services and activities on behalf of NHN. We are seeking a full-time Homeownership Counselor to provide homeownership services on behalf of NHN to residents throughout Brooklyn. The counselor will primarily focus on NHN's foreclosure prevention efforts and will report to the Director of Homeownership Programs. Full details available here. 

City First Bank of DC - multiple positions (Washington, DC)
1) Chief Lending Officer - Will lead the business development/calling program of the bank which will be geared toward growth in new loan and deposit customer relationships, strengthening and expanding existing customer relationships, increasing the bank’s outstandings and profitability, and elevating the Bank’s reputation in the marketplace. The CLO will lead the lending team in developing new loans and deposits in conformity with approved policies and procedures, including underwriting and structuring of new loans and in managing existing loan and deposit relationships. This is a senior management role and will be active in strategic efforts and will lead and participate in several committees involved in the management of the bank, such as Management Loan Committee, Directors’ Loan Committee, Senior Staff Meetings, and Internal ALCO. 

2) Chief Credit Officer - Responsible for managing the credit administration and loan documentation functions of the Bank’s loan portfolio. This role will also ensure that the lending culture of the bank is effectively communicated, implemented, and reinforced within all lending areas as well as establish written loan and credit policies, practices and procedures which meet regulatory safety and soundness standards for Board approval. The CCO will oversee the bank’s non-performing and underperforming loans and assets to ensure acceptable level of problem loans, past due loans, and loan documentation issues are managed. The CCO will provide management reports on all loan and Allowance for Loan and Lease Loss (ALLL) calculations and making recommendations to executive management and the Board of Directors for quarterly allocations to the Allowance for Loan Losses. This is a senior management role and will be active in strategic efforts and will lead and participate in several committees involved in the management of the bank, such as Directors’ Loan Committee, Management Loan Committee, Senior Staff, and Internal ALCO. 

3) Relationship Manager - Responsible for soliciting new business and managing customer relationships to real estate customers, small businesses, and not-for-profit organizations (including churches and charter schools, among others). Real estate activities generally include loans for the acquisition or renovation of nonresidential owner-occupied real estate. In addition, the prospects include office, retail, shopping strips, warehouse, industrial, facilities, and land development, primarily for investment purposes. The position reports to the Chief Lending Officer. The Relationship Manager is also responsible for all phases of loan and deposit production, including lead generation, underwriting, closing, relationship management, and portfolio monitoring and is an officer of the Bank, participating in the Directors’ Loan Committee (DLC) of the Bank, and other staff meetings as required.

Full details about these positions are available here. 

                             
The CDBA Newsflash is a service of the Community Development Bankers Association (CDBA). For more information on other members and the work of CDBA please visit www.cdbanks.org. Or write to us at: 1444 I. Street NW, Suite 201, Washington D.C., 20005 or info@cdbanks.org.

Contact Name: Dana Weinstein; weinsteind@pcgloanfund.org; 202-689-8935 x32

Date: 
Wednesday, January 2, 2013