How international standard setting bodies react to the institutional stress placed on credit unions upon the withdrawal of COVID-19 relief measures will set the tone for the regulatory issues affecting cooperative finance worldwide in 2021.

That’s one of the key developments World Council of Credit Unions’ International Advocacy team will be watching this year, as outlined in the newly released 2021 Edition of the Global Regulatory Update.

“World Council will be actively engaged with many of the standard setters and regulators to ensure an orderly withdrawal of the relief measures and that appropriate remedial measures are provided for credit unions,” said Panya Monford, World Council’s International Advocacy Counsel.

Credit unions have proven themselves to be financial first responders during the pandemic, but regulatory burden could prevent them from providing essential services once COVID-19 relief measures are lifted. That’s why World Council will again stress the importance of proportionality to ensure international standard setters encourage national-level regulators to tailor rules and regulations appropriately for credit unions.

The pandemic has also underscored the need for credit unions to digitize services going forward so their members can make account transactions remotely. Whether a credit union is launching or expanding digital services, they’ll need to keep an eye on the pertinent regulations related to digitization, and innovations in digital finance, fintech and regtech.

“This is such a constantly evolving and improving area of financial services that it’s become a top priority for our industry,” said Monford. “World Council is aware any new regulations in this area will be burdensome and costly for credit unions. We will continue inform regulators of the challenges cooperative financial institutions face when implementing and monitoring this new technology.”

The new edition also covers several other leading regulatory issues affecting credit unions across the globe, including:

• Anti-Money Laundering and Combating the Financing of Terrorism (AML/CFT).
• Sustainable Finance.
• Payments.