Tips for Credit Unions Success on the NCUA Examination. Brought to you by Mark Treichel's Credit Union Exam Solutions.
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June 15, 2026Episode 43516 min
NCUA Sues for $95 Million — and Names How the Money Vanished - Jackson Area FCU Revisited
www.marktreichel.comhttps://www.linkedin.com/in/mark-treichel/In May, NCUA conserved Jackson Area Federal Credit Union, and I recorded an episode saying I suspected the reported cash wasn’t real. This follow-up walks through what the public record now confirms.The institution reported about $162 million in assets and 9.2% net worth, but only 28% of assets in loans, roughly 66% in cash, and $41 million in non-member deposits it didn’t appear to need — the pattern that prompted my phantom-cash thesis. Since then, NCUA filed a restated call report recognizing a $91.7 million loss, cutting cash by $93.6 million, and swinging net worth from positive 9% to negative 107%, leaving the institution materially insolvent.On June 11th, NCUA filed a federal complaint alleging the former CEO diverted at least $95 million for personal use — roughly $51 million in false deposit entries plus overstated corporate-credit-union cash, the exact mechanism I had inferred from the 5300. The complaint also details alleged personal spending and a co-defendant spouse, and references an admission made to the board and NCUA in April.I cover the separation-of-duties failure at the center of the case (one person signed the filings and held wire authority), why an examiner is not a fraud auditor, the likely $77 million-plus hit to the share insurance fund, and the coming Inspector General material loss review. I close on the macro backdrop: fewer exams and a contemplated FFIEC change to CAMELS, and what that trade-off means for boards over the long run.
June 11, 2026Episode 38233 min
WFC Classic: What Should Be In Your Board Monthly Package
Episode SummaryIn this archive episode of With Flying Colors, Mark sits down with Todd Miller — longtime NCUA expert, former Director of Special Actions, and member of the CU Exam Solutions team — to break down one of the most misunderstood and under-optimized tools in credit union governance: the board package.Boards get in trouble not because they don’t care, Todd explains, but because they are often misinformed, overwhelmed, or kept in the dark. A well-designed board package solves that — if it’s built with the right mix of clarity, consistency, and candor.Todd explains:What high-performing board packages includeWhy “size and complexity” shape reporting expectationsThe danger of data dumps, inconsistent formatting, and detail overloadHow to pair dashboards with strong qualitative narrativesThe one question every executive should answer in their reportsWhy peer comparisons matterHow risk appetite, strategic plans, and deviation explanations must tie togetherReal-world stories from troubled and well-run credit unionsHow to avoid examiner criticism by aligning reporting with actual riskThis episode is full of practical actions your board and leadership team can apply immediately.Key Themes & Takeaways1. Great Board Packages Balance Qualitative + Quantitative ReportingTodd outlines a simple principle: Board reports should demonstrate management’s compliance with the business plan, board policies, and the credit union’s risk appetite. transcript Board Packages Todd …Boards need both data and narrative to understand where the credit union is, how it got there, and where it’s going.2. Consistency Builds Board TrustFrom formatting to color-coding to dashboards, consistency helps directors quickly understand risk without getting bogged down.Inconsistent layouts or disorganized reporting create confusion and can lead to micromanagement or oversight failures.3. Avoid the “Data Dump” TrapTodd highlights that many troubled credit unions had mountains of data… but no clarity. Board packets that keep expanding over time—without periodic pruning—bury critical insights.Annual reviews of what stays, what goes, and how information is summarized are essential.4. Dashboards Are Critical — But Must Be Thoughtfully BuiltDashboards should show:Where the CU has beenWhere it is nowWhere it’s trending nextThey must also be paired with narrative analysis to flag:VariancesDeviations from strategic/annual plansNew risksNew opportunities5. The Biggest Blind Spot: Credit Risk ReportingCredit risk is the No. 1 cause of failures. Todd explains how to reduce hundreds of pages into 2–3 meaningful pages with:Risk migration visualsLTV + credit score overlaysPortfolio trendsBusiness loan concentration & large-borrower exposure6. Committees Create Risk — and Reporting ObligationsALCO, lending, IT, risk committees… Boards need visibility but not minutiae.Todd walks through how well-run credit unions:Summarize committee outputElevate red flagsKeep the board focused on strategy, not operations7. Real-World Stories—The Good, The Bad, The UglyTodd shares examples of:39 unprofitable branches hidden in an overly detailed packetBoards blindsided by marijuana banking risk and resulting finesA $4 million depositor walking out because the board lacked contextThese stories underscore the need for transparency, context, and prioritization.Why This MattersA strong board package:Improves governanceEnhances regulator confidencePrevents surprisesSupports faster, cleaner examsKeeps boards strategicHelps management demonstrate competence and controlThis episode is a must-listen for CEOs, CFOs, lending executives, and directors looking to elevate their governance culture.
June 4, 2026Episode 37532 min
WFC Classic: Rating Commercial Credit Risk — What NCUA Expects
NCUA’s 2026–2030 Strategic Plan: What Changed and Why It Matters
www.marktreichel.comhttps://www.linkedin.com/in/mark-treichel/Episode: NCUA’s 2026–2030 Strategic Plan: What Changed and Why It MattersIn this solo episode, Mark Treichel walks through NCUA’s newly released 2026–2030 Strategic Plan and compares it section by section against the prior 2022–2026 plan. The contrast tells credit union leaders exactly where the agency is going — and which of those decisions are now codified as five-year commitments rather than reversible management choices.What’s covered:• The framework requirements: OMB Circular A‑11 and which 19 items the plan needed to address.• What dropped out of the 2026 plan: the eight-page economic outlook, dedicated climate-related financial risk objective, full enterprise risk management section, standalone minority depository institution objective, diversity-equity-inclusion language, and the cross-agency collaboration narrative.• What’s new in 2026: AI as a standalone strategic objective, the GENIUS Act stablecoin rulemaking as a performance target, the reorganization codified as objective 3.2, real estate footprint reduction language, merit-based hiring as a deliverable, deregulation quantified at 30 actions, and a chartering automation target.• The political cycle behind the swings: every administration gets a year after inauguration to issue a new five-year plan, and the language reflects whoever is in office.• Practical implications for credit unions: AI-assisted exam scoping, the shift of stakeholder-facing work to the regions, what the 27% workforce reduction means for examination dynamics, and how to read the deregulation scoreboard for substance vs. headline count.• Mark’s takeaways: reorganization is now a five-year strategic commitment, safety and soundness remains the North Star, AI in examinations is coming and measurable, the deregulation scoreboard is mostly budget dust with a few real items, and the smaller examiner footprint creates short-term wins and longer-term structural questions.A practical episode for credit union CEOs, board members, CFOs, and senior staff who want to understand what NCUA has actually committed to over the next five years and what to do about it before the next board meeting.About the host:Mark Treichel is the principal of Credit Union Exam Solutions. He spent more than 33 years at NCUA, including eight as Executive Director and over five years on the senior leadership team. He hosts With Flying Colors to help credit unions navigate examinations and regulatory change.
May 28, 2026Episode 37212 min
WFC Classic: Conservatorship - When NCUA Removes the Board of Directors
WFC Classic: Conservatorship - When NCUA Removes the Board of Directors
May 26, 2026Episode 37923 min
From Appeal to Proposed Rule: How One Credit Union's Field of Membership Fight Reshaped NCUA Policy with Rick Mumm
www.marktreichel.comhttps://www.linkedin.com/in/mark-treichel/Mark Treichel sits down with Rick Mumm — a 34-year NCUA veteran who spent 26 of those years in field of membership work, including bylaws, mergers, liquidations, and charter expansions — to walk through NCUA's proposed rule change on customer-client relationships in field of membership decisions.This proposal is unusual in two respects. First, unlike most of NCUA's recent deregulation announcements, it has real practical impact for credit unions seeking to add fraternal organizations or associations with any customer-client element. Second, the rule is the direct result of an actual appeal that went all the way to the NCUA Board — an appeal pursued by POLAM Federal Credit Union, led by CEO Jennifer Audette, in which the Board denied the appeal but acknowledged inconsistencies in the existing rule and committed to a rewrite.Topics covered:• Why the current Chartering Manual creates inconsistency by specifically naming the Knights of Columbus as qualifying while excluding similar fraternal organizations that sell insurance• How Thrivent fits into the picture as another mutual insurance organization that converted from a mutual savings bank into a federal credit union• The affiliate-membership wrinkle: under both Knights and Thrivent, members who don't buy insurance are affiliate members without voting rights — which the Chartering Manual says shouldn't qualify for credit union membership• What the proposed rule actually says, why it's so sparse, and what's notably absent from it• Why concerns about NCUA's loss of corporate knowledge at the Office of Credit Union Resources and Expansion mean execution will matter more than the text• How credit unions should position applications under the new standard• Why credit unions with stalled or denied applications should consider submitting comment lettersRick can be reached at rick@rcservices.com or via rcservices.com.
May 21, 2026Episode 37037 min
WFC Classic: MBL Global Cash Flow & Credit Proposals
$16 Million In Fraud from the Inside: A Walk Through NCUA’s Latest IG Report
www.marktreichel.comhttps://www.linkedin.com/in/mark-treichel/Mark Treichel walks through NCUA’s most recent Inspector General semi-annual report to Congress, covering the April through September 2025 reporting period. Seven credit union failures occurred during the cycle, with internal fraud driving the two largest losses for a combined total of more than $16 million. Mark breaks down the fraud triangle (pressure, opportunity, rationalization), examines what the failures reveal about supervisory committee performance, walks through the patterns NCUA examiners look for, and lays out a practical prevention playbook scaled to credit union size.In this episode:• The seven credit union failures from NCUA’s most recent Inspector General report• Why internal fraud accounted for the largest losses• The fraud triangle and why opportunity is the most controllable element• Record keeping failures as a force-multiplier for every other control breakdown• The supervisory committee as the first line of defense• What examiners pattern-match against during exams• Prevention strategies for credit unions under $50 million in assets• Prevention strategies for mid-size and larger credit unions• The living fraud risk assessment: member risk, product risk, enterprise risk• Why on-site exams will not be replaced by virtual examsMark Treichel spent 33 years at NCUA, including eight years as Executive Director. He is now principal of Credit Union Exam Solutions and host of the With Flying Colors podcast.
May 14, 2026Episode 36225 min
WFC Classic: So You Are A CAMELS 3 - Now What?
FC Classic: So You Are A CAMELS 3 - Now What?
May 11, 2026Episode 43427 min
Emergency Podcast - NCUA Conserves Jackson Area FCU: Reading Between the Call Report Lines
In this episode of With Flying Colors, Mark Treichel walks through NCUA’s May 6 conservatorship of Jackson Area Federal Credit Union of Jackson, Mississippi. Drawing on 33 years at NCUA — including responsibility for some of the agency’s largest historical conservatorships — Mark analyzes the publicly available call report data and explains why this case is unusual.The credit union reported 9.2% net worth at year-end 2025, alongside loan-to-assets of 27.8%, $108 million in cash on deposit at correspondent banks, and $41.8 million in non-member deposits. Mark works through why these patterns, taken together, are statistically extreme — Jackson Area is the only large credit union in the country with non-member deposits over 25% and loan-to-assets under 30%.The episode also covers a roughly $2.13 million Q4 net worth entry that lifted capital back above the well-capitalized threshold against just $42,000 in reported quarterly income, the timing of NCUA’s filing of an estimated March 31 call report the day before the conservatorship, and what the language in the press release may signal.Mark closes with five lessons for credit union boards: healthy ratios are not safety; the income statement can tell the truth the balance sheet hides; non-member deposits without lending growth deserve scrutiny; equity entries without income demand explanation; and NCUA examinations are not fraud audits.This is a solo episode — Mark’s analysis is based entirely on public data, with no insider information.
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