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NAFCU President and CEO Dan Berger yesterday urged that lawmakers keep in mind what sets credit unions apart from the big banks as they delve into the Wells Fargo scandal involving the fraudulent opening of millions of consumer accounts.

"Credit unions – not-for-profit, member-owned financial cooperatives – have been widely recognized for not causing the financial crisis and for their prudent business model," Berger said in a statement Tuesday, the same day the Senate Banking Committee convened a hearing on the Wells situation and conditions that allowed it to happen.

"We ask our lawmakers and regulators to keep in mind the critical difference of credit unions and the valuable services they provide to nearly 105 million Americans," Berger continued. "We urge them not to delay much-needed regulatory relief for credit unions as they contemplate any new regulations to address the fraudulent practices of bad actors."

Wells Fargo is facing some $185 million in fines – $100 million of it imposed by CFPB, the largest amount the bureau has ever assessed – over the reported opening of more than 1.5 million unauthorized consumer deposit accounts and more than 500,000 credit cards.

John Stumpf, Wells Fargo's chairman and CEO, faced hours of intense grilling and criticism during Tuesday's Senate Banking hearing – from Chairman Richard Shelby, R-Ala., Ranking Member Sherrod Brown, D-Ohio, panel members Elizabeth Warren, D-Mass., David Vitter, R-La., and others. Stumpf also testified that the fraudulent activity may date back as far as 2009. Warren earned headlines as she told Stumpf he should resign, give back his earnings and face a criminal investigation.

CFPB Director Richard Cordray has said in press interviews that the bureau hasn't seen anything to suggest Wells' activities are being replicated at other institutions. But there are implications for future rulemaking, with Cordray telling one panel member that he thinks forced arbitration clauses – something the bureau would ban under a proposed rule – make it easier to hide the kind of bad practices that occurred at Wells.

The prospect of other stories like Wells' was raised as well, with Comptroller of the Currency Tom Curry noting his office is looking into other banks' sales practices to determine whether they could be encouraging the same kind of activity.

The Wells Fargo scandal has been invoked numerous times throughout NAFCU's Congressional Caucus this week, with lawmakers stepping up to the podium to discuss issues, the good relationship credit unions have with their members and their own support for the member-owned cooperatives.

Berger, during his Caucus remarks, has encouraged credit unions meeting with lawmakers this week to focus not on the bad actions of this large bank, but to tell their own story to ensure lawmakers know about the good credit unions do and how they are different from Wall Street.

"Credit unions are Main Street's financial institutions," Berger said in his statement Tuesday. "Unfortunately, we have already had to endure an overwhelming regulatory burden put in place to keep Wall Street banks and big banks in check after the financial crisis. We have lost approximately 20 percent of the industry since the second quarter of 2010, when Dodd-Frank was implemented.

"Going forward," he said. "we hope legislators and regulators recognize that credit unions' have the utmost regard for their members trust. Credit unions welcome the ability to help their members fulfill their financial goals, grow their businesses or help our nation's economy to prosper.American consumers need more Main Street and less Wall Street."