Tanya Otsuka's vision for public service was forged early, borne of her grandparents' experience with injustice. "They were actually both in prison as children during World War II, because they happened to be Japanese American, even though they were both born in the United States," she said.
More than 80 years later, Otsuka has made history as the first Asian American to join the National Credit Union Administration board. The appointment is the latest step in a career in financial regulation. With nearly a decade at the FDIC and key roles in financial regulation during the banking crises in 2008 and 2023, Otsuka has established a track record in consumer advocacy and financial stability.
Raised in Northern Virginia, Otsuka was heavily influenced by her grandparents' experience during the war.
Her paternal grandparents, both U.S. citizens, were detained in internment camps during the war — her grandmother's family in Arkansas and her grandfather's in Arizona.
"I think even as a child, I recognized that something about that was wrong … I think that really shaped my sense of mission and sense of public service, and, you know, wanting to get involved in public policy," she said.
Otsuka set her sights on law school as she entered higher education. She pursued a dual-interdisciplinary degree in foreign affairs as well as political philosophy, policy and law at the University of Virginia. After earning her undergraduate degree, she enrolled at Boston College Law School, where she worked as a research assistant. Starting law school during the 2008 financial crisis, a pivotal moment in financial regulation, Otsuka saw a chance to make an impact.
"The financial crisis is kind of what catapulted me into financial regulation and financial services," she said. "The financial crisis was very active and there was a lot going on."
In her third year of law school, Otsuka clerked at the Federal Deposit Insurance Corp.'s Boston office, gaining insights from her colleagues at the FDIC during a period marked by widespread bank failures stemming from subprime mortgage loans.
"There was a lot of on the ground, kind of legal work that I was absorbing as I was learning from other attorneys," she said. "But I was also learning the nuts and bolts of banking: CAMELS ratings, you know, what kinds of consumer protection laws are on the books, what kinds of problems were banks having — [like commercial real estate] loan concentration risk."
To deepen her expertise in banking policy, Otsuka applied and was accepted into the FDIC's competitive Legal Division Honors Attorney Program, designed for recent law school graduates. Every three months, the two-year program rotated new attorneys through different areas of practice, providing a comprehensive overview of the agency's work. From 2011 to 2013, Otsuka contributed to the regulatory efforts aiming to stabilize the banking industry in the wake of the 2008 crisis and to implement measures from the Dodd-Frank Act of 2010. Otsuka spent nearly a decade at the FDIC, advancing from honors attorney to agency counsel, where she focused on specialized regulatory work.
After years at the agency, it was time for a change.
"I thought, you know, I've been at the FDIC for a really long time," she said. "And I wanted to try something new."
In 2019, Otsuka joined the Georgetown Government Affairs Institute's legislative fellowship, which led to her placement on the Senate Banking Committee in March 2020. There, she gained her first experience working on Capitol Hill, focusing on banking and credit policy. At the same time, the COVID-19 pandemic was emerging as a global crisis. Otsuka began her committee work just as Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell announced the Fed's decision to cut interest rates in an effort to manage the economic fallout from the pandemic.
"That was a really crazy time, a really scary time," she said. "Not only were we worried about the health crisis, where we're losing millions of people [globally], but we're also worried about getting relief directly to people to make sure that they and institutions could continue to make sure the economy did not crash."
While at the Senate Banking Committee, Otsuka worked for Chairman Sherrod Brown, D-Ohio, contributing to the development of the CARES Act and other COVID-related legislation and engaged in constituent work. Her time on the committee also exposed her to a third period of financial instability — this time marked by bank failures.
Otsuka managed oversight hearings, collaborated on legislative efforts and liaised with stakeholders and Republican colleagues to address and navigate the challenges posed by the 2023 crisis. She noted that unlike the 2008 crisis, when she was just starting law school, the March bank failures were issues she confronted directly and in real time.
"When I first started my career … I kind of started in the aftermath of the crisis; there were still a lot of failures happening, but it was not at its peak," she said. "So from a personal, professional standpoint, the spring 2023 bank failures happened much more in real time."
She also noted the 2023 failures were more isolated than the 2008 crisis, and while there were knock-on effects around the economy, the failures for the most part were limited to the banking sector.
"Those failures showed me really how important basic, fundamental, sound banking [risk management] is," she said. "All of those decisions that were being made ultimately come down to whether the management was strong or not … in this case, they kept chasing yields, they kept making decisions that were to the bank's detriment."
Later that year, as Trump nominee Rodney Hood's term as an NCUA board member expired in August, the Biden administration approached Otsuka to gauge her interest. After she agreed, Otsuka appeared at a Senate Banking Committee confirmation hearing.
Reflecting on her family's experiences with the credit union sector, Otsuka described her nomination as an honor and a humbling moment. She shared how credit unions had historically provided Japanese Americans with financial support and helped them rebuild in the midst of discrimination which, in some cases, hindered access to essential banking services. Consumer advocacy organizations voiced their support for her confirmation, and her tenure as a senior aide to Brown earned her a reputation as a thoughtful advocate committed to standing up for consumers and the public interest. She also had relevant experience in other regulatory arenas.
"The FDIC and the NCUA are both deposit insurers, so that is a very similar mission," she said. "So I think there are a lot of translatable skills and experience."
Her term on the board runs through Aug. 2, 2029.
Otsuka has already begun to advocate for policies focused on maintaining the stability and resilience of credit unions. Her priorities include ensuring that the National Credit Union Share Insurance Fund remains robust, addressing risks associated with changing interest rates and safeguarding member assets. She supports strategic investments in staffing and resources, particularly for small and Minority Depository Institution credit unions, to enhance their capacity to serve underserved communities.
In January, Otsuka
Otsuka also advocates for ensuring credit unions — particularly the largest ones — stay true to their founding mission of serving their members. She has underscored the importance of consumer financial protection programs and comprehensive examinations to uphold compliance with laws like the Truth in Lending Act.
"There's a lot of credit unions out there who, you know, they really are staying true to their mission … I want credit unions to stay competitive so they can better serve their members and attract new ones, and being mission-driven is what gives credit unions their advantage," she said. "They can offer lower interest rates, lower fees, more affordable products … that's what people go to credit unions for."
While credit unions were originally formed to serve people with modest means, some credit unions are quite large, offer membership nationwide and have been fined by the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau for nonadherence to the Consumer Financial Protection Act. Otsuka is focused on both ensuring NCUA-regulated institutions reflect this founding spirit and remain competitive.
"We need a financial system that supports financial security: a credit union or bank nearby, affordable deposit or share accounts and loans, a fair shot at getting a mortgage and the ability to save for retirement," she said. "There is more work to be done, but since I've joined the NCUA board, this has translated into encouraging new charters and branches, ensuring credit unions are serving underserved areas, and protecting consumers and credit union members."
