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In This Issue
Register for our Directors Conference!
IBANYS partners with T.Gschwender
IBANYS on the radio!
Government Relations Update
Wanna be on tv?
Advertise in CommuNitY
Comments sought on prepaid cards
Quick Links


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Upcoming IBANYS Events 

6/1/12 - Government Relations Peer Council Conference Call, 10am 

 

6/12/12 - Directors Conference, Doubletree Hotel, Syracuse

 

7/12-13/12 - Regional & Board Meetings, Western NY Golf Outing & Dinner, PAC Fundraiser, Buffalo      

 

7/19/12 - Regional Meeting, Finger Lakes

 

9/9,10,11/12 - Annual Convention, Turning Stone Resort, Verona 

Click HERE to see all the upcoming IBANYS events!

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Brainstorm your best newsletter ideas, then send them our way!
 

FRANKLIN
The
Franklin Club 

 Contribute $100 or more to the our state PAC, you will become a member of the Franklin Club.  

 

Everyone receives a Franklin Club lapel pin and recognition at IBANYS events. We're also adding a part of www.ibanys.net dedicated to Franklin Club members. 

 

Click the link below.     

Inside IBANYS 

May 30, 2012



Register for the IBANYS Directors Conference today!

 

There are still a few days left to register for the IBANYS Bank Directors Conference! The full-day conference is a must for Bank Directors, CEOs, COOs, Senior Managers, Bank Presidents, etc. Get the latest information in a convenient location and only miss a day at the office!

 

What: IBANYS Bank Directors Conference  

When: Tuesday, June 12, 2012

Where: Doubletree Hotel, East Syracuse, NY 

 

Find full programming information and register here: 2012 IBANYS Directors Conference 

   

Do not delay! Registration is due by Friday, June 1! 

gschwender
IBANYS announces partnership with T. Gschwender

 

T. Gschwender & Associates, Inc. has been named a Preferred Service Provider by Independent Bankers Associates of New York State. TGA has been providing loan review services to IBANYS member banks for nearly 30 years.

 

The company was established in 1984 by Thomas H. Gschwender and purchased by Bharpur "Bo" Singh, former OCC Examiner and Regional President of Adirondack Bank, in 2008. Since the transfer in ownership, TGA has grown over 300% and now has clients in six different states. "Our current clients include large regional community banks with assets well over $5 billion to small community banks with assets less than $100 million," states Singh. "Our growth is attributable to not only our risk based proprietary loan review system and approach, but the expansion our services  as well. We are in all essence a highly sophisticated Credit Department, able to handle everything from underwriting, portfolio management, to problem loan management. This allows our clients to tap into our resources where they need us...without having to hire additional personnel," explains Singh.

 

TGA consultants  have grown from 5 to over 20 during the same period. "Finding the right people is the key to success. We continue to focus on recruiting retired bankers that have extensive experience to be our primary consultants. This not only allows them to supplement their retirement income, but also to stay involved in banking on a part time basis," says Singh. TGA executive team includes two former bank President/CEOs as well as a senior manager from the OCC. With expertise spanning "both sides of the street", the company's associates provide a well-balanced and thorough approach to services to banks.

 

"Our future looks very bright. We will be launching our e-Credit File System soon which will allow our clients to digitize their hard copy loan/credit files. Our system looks and feels like a hard copy credit file (with different tabs or sections) and will allow for easy storage and retrieval of documents, as well as has help clients manage documents that are required on periodic basis by having a built in tickler system. It will also be accessible on iPads/tablets as well as smart phones. This way the Relationship Managers can access the credit file while on calls with customers, if need be," Singh explains. Along with their web-based Loan Review System that banks can use to conduct their annual reviews, the e-Credit File System will be marketed nationally to over 20,000 financial institutions. Singh indicates that, "This will jump start TGA in being recognized more as a national player rather than a regional consulting firm."

 

"We are grateful for the Preferred Service Provider designation from IBANYS and we look forward to continuing to service their member banks for many years to come," says Singh. "We believe this relationship will be beneficial for everyone involved."


IBANYS hits the road for one more week!

 

IBANYS and Town Square Media have teamed up for the WGNA Small Town Tour! Heading to small towns across the Capital Region every Friday morning, IBANYS is one of two exclusive sponsors for this special event. This Friday, you'll be able to listen to a live radio broadcast featuring IBANYS staff and local member bankers.  

 

This week, we are highlighting Schuylerville, NY. NBT Bank will be joining us in the radio fun, as they have multiple branches in the surrounding area! If you are in the area, stop by Mac's Diner at 106 Broad Street.     

 

If you are not in the area, you can listen live here:  http://wgna.com/category/small-town-tour/   

 

Also, check out pictures from last week's tour in Schoharie, NY with IBANYS and The Bank of Richmondville: click here! 

 

The morning show runs from 6:00am-10:00am daily. After this week, IBANYS will join the Small Town Tour when it hits the road again, starting in September.  

Government Relations Update 

 

By Steve Rice, IBANYS Director of Government Relations, Policy & Services Development 

  

LEGISLATIVE UPDATE

This week is a two-day work week, as the Legislature didn't return from the Memorial Day recess until Wednesday, May 30. They will return next Monday, June 4 for the final three weeks of the 2012 session.

 

The Senate has passed S. 4927 (Griffo)/A. 8147 (Magee), increasing the funding available in the Community Bank Deposit Program from $250 million to $350 million, but limiting deposits under the Program at each bank to $20 million. The Assembly version remains in the Assembly Banks Committee.

 

The Senate has also passed S. 4194 (Griffo)/A. 6872 (Lavine), which creates the felony of bank robbery and increases the penalty for unarmed robberies.

 

The Assembly Ways & Means Committee meets Thursday. On its agenda: The CDARS bill (A.8971, Magnarelli), which NYBA supports. This would amend the general municipal law, the state finance law and the public authorities law in relation to authorizing the state, local governments and public authorities to arrange for redeposit of moneys through a deposit placement program. The Senate version (S. 5135, Martins) is on the Senate Calendar on third reading.

 

The Assembly Banks Committee will also meet Thursday, May 31. On its agenda:

  • 3359 (Gabryszak et al) to prohibit financial institutions from charging a fee in excess of five dollars to a customer based on account inactivity.
  • A.567 (Lentol) would require banks to install automatic police notification software on their ATMs.
  • A.1394-A (Ortiz) would require financial institutions to post the NYS Department of Financial Services' toll free hotline ensure that financial consumers are aware of where to file a complaint against a banking institution. No Senate companion bill has yet been introduced for any of these Assembly bills.

IBANYS' Government Relations Committee will meet by conference call this week for a review of current federal and state issues, and a look ahead at the final three weeks of the 2012 NYS legislative session.

 

In Other News...

 

New Yorkers leave  

More than 3.4 million New Yorkers - with combined annual earnings of $119 billion - left for other states from 2000 through 2009, according to the Tax Foundation. The most popular destination: Florida, where taxes are considerably lower.

 

According to the new Quinnipiac Poll -- this morning's Q poll -- Governor Cuomo's approval rating is at 71%-16% - the highest score for an Empire State governor since Gov. George Pataki hit 81 percent following the 9/11 attacks. This also continues Governor Cuomo's year-long trend with the highest approval rating of any governor in the seven states surveyed by the Q poll. U.S. Sen. Kirsten Gillibrand's approval rating is 60-22 - matching her best Quinnipiac poll score to date - and she handily defeats any of her three potential Republican opponents by a comfortable double-digit margin.

 

Poll respondents also overwhelmingly support raising the minimum wage, 79-18 -- including 76-11 among Republicans. A majority of New Yorkers (56-40) say teacher performance evaluation should be made public. Union households are divided, 49-49, but all other groups are in support.

 

Bruno trial set 

Per the Associated Press, the second federal trial of former NYS Senate Majority Leader Joseph L. Bruno will begin Feb 4. He was convicted in 2009 of depriving the public of honest services in charges related to his outside business interests while serving as one of the state's most powerful figures.

That conviction was vacated after the U.S. Supreme Court struck down provisions of the honest services law. He was re-indicted earlier this month. 

Do you have unclaimed items at your bank? You could be on TV!

 

ICBA tells us that television producer Mark Burnett has teamed with the National Geographic channel to create the pilot Box Busters (working title)-a television show in which a cast of colorful detectives aim to return unclaimed property to its rightful owners and/or heirs. If your community bank has stacks of cash or unique items hidden away in your vaults and storage rooms, the show's staff want to hear from you!

Community bankers who might have an interesting item for the show are asked to take a digital picture of the item and email it to UnclaimedPropertyTV@gmail.com, along with a description of the piece, any historical or local knowledge about the unclaimed property, and if and when the item might be escheated to the state treasury. If you think your historic bank vault would look good on camera, include a picture of that too.

 

Please include the email address and phone number for a point person in your office so production can coordinate and begin any necessary paperwork.

 

Remember that what you find doesn't have to come from a safety deposit box. Bigger is better; visual is great. If there's a story behind the unclaimed property, the producers want to hear it. The more items there are to choose from, the better the pilot, which will help get an order to produce the entire series.


Advertise in our new magazine!

 

IBANYS is launching a new magazine, CommuNitY, and we could not be more excited! Set to debut with a July/August issue, this magazine will reach ALL community banks in New York State, all IBANYS Members, New York State elected officials, other state banking associations, and more!

 

For more information and ad rates/specs, click here! 

U.S. Consumer Bureau Seeks Comments on Prepaid Debit Card Rules

 

By Carter Dougherty, Bloomberg, May 23, 2012

 

The Consumer Financial Protection Bureau is seeking comment on what should be included in a forthcoming regulation on prepaid debit cards.

 

"Right now, prepaid cards have far fewer regulatory protections than bank accounts or debit or credit cards," the bureau's director, Richard Cordray, said in an e-mailed statement.

 

Rules on prepaid cards could squeeze the revenue that companies such as Wal-Mart Stores Inc., Green Dot Corp. and NetSpend Holdings Inc. collect on prepaid cards. Mercator Advisory Group, a Maynard, Massachusetts-based consulting firm, says that the amount loaded on prepaid cards in the U.S. is growing by 42 percent per year and will hit $167 billion in 2014, according to the bureau.

 

The agency is requesting public comment on the new rule by July 22. The regulation will cover so-called general purpose reloadable cards, prepaid cards that can be restocked with cash once the initial amount is drawn down.

 

The consumer bureau plans to propose a draft regulation by early 2013, according to a person with direct knowledge of its plans.

 

The bureau held a field hearing on its plans for prepaid cards in Durham, North Carolina. The hearing included representatives of the prepaid card industry and consumer advocates.

 

In a statement prepared for the hearing, Cordray stressed that the focus will be on "safety and transparency" in the prepaid card market.

 

 "We believe that innovation can bring great benefits to consumers and can provide those outside the traditional banking system with more access to financial products that meet their needs," Cordray said in the prepared statement. "But we have a duty to make sure these products are safe for consumers and that prepaid card issuers do not make money by relying on tricks or traps."

 

Prepaid cards do not have the same protections as credit cards if they're lost or stolen, the money they hold is not always insured by the Federal Deposit Insurance Corp., and only sometimes are fees for checking balances or adding value disclosed on the cards' packaging, according to Cordray's statement.

 

On some cards, he said in the statement, "the fees, terms and conditions that apply to the card are printed on an inner flap or in a magnificent origami pamphlet located inside the package."   

 

To learn more, click here: http://www.consumerfinance.gov/blog/live-from-durham-nc/   

Frank J. Capaldo              
President / CEO
  
Victoria Miller
Director of Administration & Membership

Erin Clark
Director of Communications, Development & Marketing

Steve Rice
Director of Government Relations, Policy & Services Development 

William Y. Crowell, III
Legislative Counsel