Municipal Credit Union in New York released from conservatorship

Municipal Credit Union in New York has been released from its conservatorship under the National Credit Union Administration.

The $4.2 billion-asset credit union was first placed into the care of the NCUA by the New York State Department of Financial Services in May 2019. Its former chief executive Kam Wong was terminated the previous year after being arrested and charged with various financial crimes, including fraud and embezzlement.

“Municipal’s leadership and staff diligently worked to fix identified problems, guide Municipal through this conservatorship, and restore the credit union’s health, so that we can now return governance of the credit union to its members,” Todd M. Harper, chairman of the NCUA board, said in a press release Wednesday.

In conjunction with the charges against him, Wong was also permanently barred by the NCUA from having anything to do with the inner workings of a federally insured financial institution.

“Municipal Credit Union’s emergence from conservatorship is a significant victory for the hundreds of thousands of New Yorkers who rely on the institution for their financial needs,” Adrienne A. Harris, superintendent of the New York agency, said in the release.

Municipal reported 2021 net income of about $111 million, up from $46 million in 2020, according to NCUA call report data.