Matz: NCUA to Update Risk-Based Capital Standards

Speaking at the Annual Conference of the National Association of Federal Credit Unions, NCUA Chairman Debbie Matz said the agency is in the process of updating its risk-based net worth (capital) requirements for credit unions with more than $50 million in assets.

Chairman Matz pointed out that the current one-size-fits-all net worth requirement of 7 percent is outdated and insufficient. She said that such a capital regime "does not belong in the ever growing, increasingly complex credit union industry."

Chairman Matz stated:

"A net worth ratio of 7 percent would remain the floor, as required by the Federal Credit Union Act. However, credit unions with assets over $50 million would be subject to improved risk-based capital requirements, to better correlate required capital levels to risk. The result would be higher capital levels for credit unions with high concentrations of risky assets."

However, Chairman Matz said that NCUA has no plans to implement Basel III for credit unions and that Basel III is not right for credit unions.

Read the speech.