Fred R. Becker, Jr., joined NAFCU as president and CEO in January 2000. Since then, he has worked tirelessly to advance credit union issues with federal regulatory agencies, the White House and Congress. During his tenure at NAFCU, Becker has fostered innovation and a commitment to membership, dramatically increasing NAFCU’s direct contact with its membership and outreach to the national media.
Becker has actively championed credit unions with policymakers advocating an increase in the credit union member business lending cap, expanded credit union participation in the Small Business Administration programs and creation of a new risk-based capital regime for credit unions. The association fought hard for credit union interests during the most recent debate on financial services reform, advocating an exemption for credit unions from the new Consumer Financial Protection Bureau and removal of interchange fee restrictions on credit unions; and successfully secured a provision in the Wall Street Reform and Consumer Protection Act that excludes all credit unions from paying into a dissolution fund for the wind-down of large firms.
Under Becker’s leadership, NAFCU has collaborated with the National Credit Union Administration (NCUA) to remove the existing cap on the lending authority of the Central Liquidity Facility and pass legislation establishing the Temporary Corporate Credit Union Stabilization Fund. The latter allows the NCUA to take up to seven years to replenish the National Credit Union Share Insurance Fund, affording credit unions welcome relief from overly burdensome assessments.
In addition, Becker directed NAFCU’s efforts to ensure the defeat of legislation creating broad mortgage bankruptcy cramdown authority in both the Senate and the House. NAFCU also garnered a fix of the 21-day notice requirement under the Credit Card Accountability and Responsibility Act. This provision now only applies to credit cards and not all open-end credit.
Most recently, Becker spearheaded NAFCU’s media outreach related to the Bank Transfer Day movement. The efforts established new traffic records for
CULookup.com, NAFCU’s unique credit union locator, and launched a blitz of landmark coverage, including
ABC World News Tonight, CNN and
PBS Nightly Business Report.
CULookup.com has also been featured on the
CBS Early Show,
CNBC and in
Consumer Reports,
The New York Times and numerous online personal finance outlets.
Becker’s insightful commentary has appeared in
The Huffington Post,
USA Today,
U.S. News and World Report,
The Washington Post,
The New York Times and
The Wall Street Journal; and he has appeared on numerous national and regional television and radio outlets, including
CNN,
Fox Business Network,
Bloomberg Radio and
Wall Street Journal Radio. Becker’s efforts to promote credit unions as a “prudent and consumer-friendly” alternative to other financial institutions led to his recognition as one of 2010’s top association leaders by
CEO Update.
Becker is a graduate of the U.S. Naval Academy. He holds a JD from the Marshall-Wythe School of Law at the College of William and Mary, and an MBA from Virginia Polytechnic Institute & State University (Virginia Tech).