Throughout his career in the credit union movement Donal Coghlan has had direct engagement with over 200 credit unions. Donal can leverage the knowledge gained from these interactions along with his professional investment acumen and experience to assist the boards and management of credit unions better understand the investment challenges and opportunities that exist in a credit union.
Fairway Advisers works in co-operation with credit unions providing professional advice on the management of their investment portfolios. Our advisory services include the following activities:
- Provide investment advisory services in compliance with regulations and legislation and consistent with the Credit Union’s own investment policy and risk appetite.
- Help develop and implement investment strategies aligned to the Credit Union’s asset liability management approach that will maintain or enhance investment portfolio quality and performance.
- Provide detailed reports on the investment portfolio including compliance with regulatory requirements, portfolio performance and valuations.
- Meet with financial institutions and other product providers to represent you and achieve best terms & rates on investment products.
- Perform due diligence reviews of current and proposed financial institutions and counterparties.
- Provide the Credit Union with cost effective methods in which to manage its investments and work with the Credit Union to ensure coordination of investment trades.
- Provide guidance an accounting methodology and be available for year end audit.
- Provide Credit Union staff and officers with ongoing training and technical advice as needed.
- Provide regular updates and research on changes that may impact on your existing or proposed investments.
- Review the arrangements and safeguards in place with custodians and other counterparties in which the Credit Union places funds.
Fairway Advisers specialises in providing impartial, competitive and expert investment advice and services to credit unions. The firm operates on the basis of full cost transparency and provides services for fixed fees with rebates of fees and commissions payable from third party banks and other product producers.
The investment portfolio constitutes the largest asset in most credit unions accounting for on average 70% of Total Assets.
Fairway Advisers can undertake a fully independent investment portfolio review tailored to an individual credit union’s needs that covers the following areas:
- Review of the investment portfolio for performance and compliance with regulations. The review will include analysis of the range of permitted investment instruments, diversification of counterparties, liquidity, and investment duration management
- Review of the accounting classification, guidance on accounting treatment and valuation of the various financial instruments
- Review of the credit union’s investment policy
- Outlook on the current investment environment and impact on the investment portfolio
The output of this review is a comprehensive report written in plain English which is presented to Boards and Management as an interactive training session at the end of the assignment.
Under regulations, credit unions can invest in regulated funds that make loans for up to 25 years to Tier 3 Approved Housing Bodies (AHBs). These regulations create the opportunity for two community focused sectors to cooperate in addressing the current national housing shortage.
Fairway Advisers provides distribution services for the CU AHB Fund, a genuine ESG investment option for Credit Unions and the first such fund of its kind authorised by the Central Bank to enable credit union investments to be used by Approved Housing Bodies for the provision of much needed social homes.
If you would like to gain further insight into this investment class for credit unions, please make contact with Donal Coghlan at donal@fairwayadvisers.ie or use the contact page to set up a meeting.
The preparation of a Strategic Plan is a legal requirement under the Credit Union Acts but more importantly the preparation and implementation of a strategic plan is an essential requirement for helping to ensure a credit union’s continued relevance and viability. The expertise and experience within Fairway Advisers can assist credit union boards in the various strategic planning stages:
- Economic & Market Analysis
- Business Model Appraisal
- Assessment of key resources
- Implementation Plans
- Periodic Reviews
Credit unions can choose to use our services to facilitate the entire process or provide specialist expertise at different stages.
Separate assignment and assistance for balance sheet reviews, development of asset & liability management policies, financial modelling and scenario analysis are also provided.
Whilst credit unions operate on a not-for-profit basis, there is a continuous need to grow revenues, manage costs, improve overall performance, and maintain adequate capital levels to ensure lasting member services.
Fairway Advisers provides specialist review and advisory expertise on all financial aspects of the balance sheet. Assignments include
- focused reviews
- preparation of financial projections
- regulatory reporting assistance
- preparation and review of business cases
Mergers by way of transfers of engagements or amalgamations play a vital role in the development of a strong and viable credit union movement.
During his tenure as CEO of the Credit Union Restructuring Board (ReBo), Donal Coghlan developed the merger process which supported over 100 merger projects involving 212 credit unions. ReBo completed the performance of its restructuring functions in 2017 but the processes developed remains in place for those credit unions wishing to consider mergers as part of their growth strategy.
Fairway Advisers provides merger consulting and project management services and can work with credit unions from conception to delivery and post-merger or provide expert assistance along the journey in the following areas:
- Asset reviews
- Business Case preparation
- Review of financial projections
- Transfer & integration planning
- Regulatory Compliance reviews
- Training & Consulting
- Post-merger effectiveness reviews
