Credit unions need a sustainable approach to growing deposits. One component of that is the use of high-yield accounts, says Alisha Crafton, chief growth officer at Kasasa.

In this episode, sponsored by Kasasa, Crafton examines the company’s use of data and analytics, industry trends, the concept of “phantom growth,” deposit growth strategies, and more.

Housing finance and affordable housing take center stage on this week’s episode, sponsored by the Council of Federal Home Loan Banks (FHLB).

Ryan Donovan, president/CEO at the council, updates listeners on a recent report from the Federal Housing Finance Agency (FHFA) and discusses how FHLBs support mortgage financing, the council’s Affordable Housing Program, success stories from this program, and more.

Join Michael Bell from Honigman LLP for an exciting discussion about growth planning. Mr. Bell provides a glimpse of his practice helping credit unions navigate the world of mergers and acquisitions. Mr. Bell shares his expertise regarding strategic planning and growth, key considerations for the merger process, and perspectives on field of membership and chartering.

Key Takeaways:

• Recognize common misconceptions and pitfalls in strategic planning around growth;
• Understand key considerations for credit unions merging with another credit union or purchasing bank assets;
• Learn about the optimal charter for a merger and common issues related to charger changes; and
• Hear about potential improvements that would make the chartering and merger process easier.

Bio: Michael Bell

Mr. Bell serves as Chair of the Financial Institutions Practice Group at Honigman. He represents financial institutions throughout the United States and has completed over 40 M&A transactions in the past five years. In 2011, he pioneered a new option for credit unions to achieve rapid growth with the first purchase of a whole bank by a credit union. For the past decade, he has completed the majority of credit union purchases of banks and has become the nationwide leader and go-to legal adviser in this space. Mr. Bell has also helped credit unions acquire other businesses, including insurance and investment companies, trust companies, real estate brokerages, mortgage originators and specialized lenders. He additionally advises financial institutions on all regulatory matters at the state and federal level. Mr. Bell has extensive experience counseling individual entrepreneurs through publicly traded companies on strategies such as non-organic growth and strategic planning.