Critical FCRA Bill Nears Approval
As Independent Banker went to press, Congress seemed poised to enact ICBA-supported legislation to make permanent essential federal preemptions for credit bureau reporting and affiliate information sharing under the Fair Credit Reporting Act. These much-needed federal preemptions, which override conflicting state laws on credit reporting and information sharing, are scheduled to expire Dec. 31, 2003.
The House of Representatives passed its version of the legislation, H.R. 2622, by an overwhelming 392-30 margin in late summer. This fall, the Senate Banking Committee unanimously approved a generally similar version of the bill-although panel Chairman Richard Shelby (R-Ala.) successfully inserted language into the Senate measure that would require that customers be given the right to opt-out of certain marketing solicitations from affiliates. Whether that provision survives a House-Senate conference committee vote remains to be seen. Any FCRA legislation enacted this year is also expected to include provisions to:
* Stem identity theft;
* Improve the accuracy of credit reports;
* Promote financial literacy; and
* Enable consumers to request one free credit report per year.
A Family Tradition
Parents take heart: When it comes to choosing a bank, college students most often turn to mom and pop for advice.
While college students tend to be Web savvy consumers looking for online financial products, when it comes to choosing a financial institution more than 65 percent consider parental recommendations as "important" or "very important," a Celent Communications survey shows.
In fact, the top considerations of today's college students, excluding rates and pricing, mirror those of their parents. They include branch locations, ATM locations, availability of online services and brand reputation.
Convenience Versus Fun
Women want to save time. Men just want to play. And banks marketing services, particularly online services, should recognize these differences.
Javelin Strategy and Research in Pleasanton, Calif., reports that men enjoy the novelty of Internet banking and bill pay, seeing the products more as a game than a financial tool. However, the company found that today's busy women like the time-savings those products provide.
ID Theft Costing Businesses, Too
I dentity theft has become a near $48 billion problem for businesses-including financial services institutions.
In the 9.9 million reported cases of identity theft over the past year, businesses lost $4,800 on average. That is 10 times greater than the $500 average loss to individuals, a Federal Trade Commission survey shows.
Instances when a fraudster opens an account in a victim's name have proven the most expensive for business at a cost of $10,200 per victim. Crimes where thieves use a victim's established account result in a $2,100 loss to business per victim.
National Community Bank Service Award Entries Sought
Is your bank engaged in an outstanding community service project? Then ICBA wants to hear from you.
ICBA is accepting applications to select five national winners for its National Community Bank Service Awards. All banks with service programs will be promoted during Community Banking Month. A grand national winner will receive a trip to Washington, D.C.
For more information and an application, visit the home page of ICBA's Web site at www.icba.org, or call ICBA's Tim Cook at (800) 422-8439. Applications are due by Nov. 21, 2003.
ICBA Welcomes New Marketing Director
Tony Sidiropoulos, a former online financial services marketing executive, has been named ICBA's new director of marketing. He will direct the overall marketing strategy of the trade association.
"Tony has strategic marketing experience in the financial services and nonprofit sectors," says ICBA President- and CEO-elect Camden R. Fine.
Before joining the ICBA, Sidiropoulos was responsible for all sales and marketing activities at a consulting and services organization serving the online financial community. He helped form the Electronic Presentment and Payment Adoption Council, a non-profit trade group that promotes consumer adoption of online financial management tools. He has also held senior marketing positions with several financial, document management I and technology firms.
Atlanta Bank Welcomes Japanese Visitors
Paging through the March 2001 issue of Independent Banker, Muneyuki Yuri was intrigued by a story about Capitol City Bank & Trust in Atlanta. As an associate professor of finance in Japan, he was impressed by the bank's rapid growth to $120 million in assets from its $5.5 million start in 1994. Yuri was also intrigued by the bank's adherence to the principles of community banking-namely working closely with local customers and small business owners to meet their financial needs.
Yuri, of Chukyo University in Nagoya, Japan, and two bankers from the Development Bank of Japan recently made the 7,000-mile trip to Capitol City Bank to explore ways to apply the community bank model to revitalize Japan's economy. Paying special attention to issues such as soundness in small business lending, regulatory supervision, profitability and community redevelopment, they listened to George Andrews, the bank's president, explain the importance of local leadership and re-investment.
Yuri and company were also curious about the term "relationship lending" and the ability of community bankers to look beyond automated credit scores to understand their customers.
Check Card Use Growing
Consumers may be spending little more this year than last, but more of them are using check cards.
During the first six months of 2003, more than 133 million Visa check cardholders spent over $134 billion, 20 percent more than in the first half of 2002, according to data from the Bureau of Economic Analysis. Consumer spending rose 4.8 percent.
E-Check Volume Hits 1 Billion
E-check payments, or one-time electronic debits to consumer checking accounts, are expected to reach or exceed one billion by the end of this year, doubling the total for these payments in 2002.
An increase in consumers' comfort with electronic payments, especially in terms of privacy and fraud protection, contributed to the growth, says NACHA, the Electronic Payments Association.
Branch Banking Lives
Predictions that Internet banking and other alternate delivery channels would render branch banking obsolete continue to prove faulty.
More than 80 percent of Americans visit a bank branch at least once a month, according to a recent Gallup Tuesday Briefing poll. Nearly 30 percent make the trip four times or more.
FUN FACTS
While it is a common misperception that the dollar sign ($) was first formed when the initials U.S. were superimposed on one another, it is likely the familiar sign was first formed by the Spanish.
In old manuscripts, Spanish pesos, or piastres, or pieces of eight, are often designated by the letters as "PS." Gradually the letter "S" came to be written over the letter "P" forming a close equivalent to today's '$' sign. The mark was in use long before the U.S. dollar was issued in 1785.
Source: U.S. Bureau of Engraving and Printing
Web Site Watch
The FDIC's Money Smart program (www.fdic.gov/consumers/consumer/moneysmart) is a financial education curriculum that community bankers can use to educate adults the basics of money management.
