September 1, 2023—Asset Liability Management (ALM) ensures that your credit union is not only financially viable but also performing well with adequate capital, stable earnings, sufficient liquidity, and well-informed policies to manage interest rate risk. Understanding your balance sheet composition and ensuring the accuracy of your ALM models and assumptions are critical in a changing rate environment. A well-rounded ALM strategy will address any interest rate fluctuations that impact the fair market value of the balance sheet. It can also help mitigate potential risk, capitalize on market trends and opportunities, and, ultimately, position the credit union for growth.
Credit unions should look at these fall 2023 trends:
- Liquidity: With rising rates, tightening liquidity is a concern for both credit unions and their regulators. Your ability to effectively manage liquidity in response to loan demand, deposit growth, or other factors has significant implications for your credit unio’s profitability, stability, and reputation.
- Loan Growth: Rising interest rates can often benefit loan programs through a increase in interest income, this year, however, from a valuation standpoint, many financial institutions are experiencing unrealized losses on long-term assets. Loan originations have slowed, particularly in the real estate market where rising interest rates have decreased affordability for buyers and disincentivized homeowners to sell. Non-real estate originations, auto loans and credit cards, are also impacted by interest rate increases and are down about 20% year over year from Q2 2022*.
- Deposit Funding: With core deposits down, many credit unions are paying higher rates to attract and retain deposits and are offering certificate of deposit special to attract new deposits.
- Borrowing Sources: To prepare for market-driven liquidity events, credit unions need to have contingency funding sources in place, ensure documentation is complete and collateral pre-pledged, and that operational needs are understood. Consider performing an operational test of this credit facility.
With EasCorp’s ALM Modeling and Model Validation Services, you’ll receive insights into the management and potential performance of your balance sheet. Learn more about our ALM Professional Services.
*According to Callahan and Associates data reported in June 2023.