On credit union compliance: What’s coming in 2016

We’ve almost reached the end of 2015, and it’s time to start looking ahead to the new year. What compliance challenges should you be prepping for? What new hurdles should your credit union be prepared to face?

In 2015, credit union regulators focused on protections for credit union members, but we’re starting to see regulators shift their focus toward institutional rules—the items that ensure the safety and soundness of the institutions themselves.

The following three areas, in particular, are likely to see increased scrutiny and change in the year ahead:

Cybersecurity. At least 60 data breaches have occurred in the financial sector alone in 2015, compromising more than 5 million records, according to the Identity Theft Resource Center. As records continue to move online, and cyber theft becomes more sophisticated, regulators are increasingly looking at institutions’ cybersecurity measures, including infrastructure and documentation procedures. Additionally, the Federal Financial Institutions Examination Council released a cybersecurity assessment tool this summer that all credit unions may find benefit in using, even though this is currently optional.

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