Skip to main content
Menu Icon
Close

InfoBytes Blog

Financial Services Law Insights and Observations

NCUA Publishes Proposed Rule Offering Alternate Capital Proposal for Credit Unions

Federal Issues Banking NCUA Capital Requirements Agency Rule-Making & Guidance

Federal Issues

On February 8, the National Credit Union Administration (NCUA) published a notice of proposed rulemaking to expand the types of investment capital that federally insured credit unions could use to meet certain regulatory requirements. NCUA is considering whether to allow credit unions to use investment capital (that would be uninsured capital subordinate to all other claims) to satisfy the risk-based net worth ratio requirement. Currently, only low-income designated credit unions are allowed to use secondary capital to satisfy two regulatory requirements: the net worth ratio and the risk-based net-worth ratio. Although any changes to the definition of net worth would require an act of Congress, the NCUA asserted in the proposal that it has broad authority to adjust the risk-based net worth ratio requirement and therefore may choose to allow credit unions that are not “low-income designated” to use alternative capital to meet this requirement.