Protecting the Credit Union and Cooperative Model in a Year of Uncertainty
WOCCU International Advocacy releases 2025 Global Regulatory Update
27 February 2025
MADISON, Wis.—With a vast amount of regulatory uncertainty resulting from an unprecedented number of newly elected officials across the globe and an International Year of Cooperatives’ mission to fulfill—2025 will be a critical year for credit union advocacy worldwide.
That is the overriding theme of World Council of Credit Unions’ (WOCCU) 2025 Global Regulatory Update, which stresses how divergent messages relating to whether previously held financial laws will be honored or revoked, and how global leaders embrace or reject international standards will impact the regulatory landscape this year and beyond.
“For credit unions, this means remaining vigilant in protecting our cooperative structure and the regulatory oversight that is specific to our model. Establishing appropriate regulations that enable credit unions to support financial access and foster economic growth has never been more important,” said Erin O’Hern, WOCCU’s International Advocacy and Regulatory Counsel, who authored the report. “The United Nations (UN) declared 2025 as the International Year of Cooperatives, an honor that highlights the critical impact the cooperative model plays in addressing global challenges and provides an opportunity to bring greater awareness to the impact credit unions and other financial cooperatives have worldwide. We must embrace this moment.”
World Council’s Global Regulatory Update is put out on an annual basis to help credit unions and financial cooperatives prepare for the compliance issues most likely to impact them in the year ahead. The new edition also covers several other leading regulatory issues affecting credit unions across the globe, including:
- Digitalization and Developing Technologies.
- Climate-related Financial Risks.
- Strengthening Individual Frameworks.
You can read World Council’s 2025 Global Regulatory Update in its entirety by clicking here.
You can also hear an interview with Erin O'Hern and Paul Andrews, WOCCU Vice President of International Advocacy, about their advocacy efforts to bring foreign aid funding back to WOCCU, a recent win they had for credit unions with the Financial Action Task Force and what other things they are keeping an eye on in 2025 on Episode 46 of the Global Credit Union Podcast.
World Council of Credit Unions (WOCCU) is the global trade association for the credit union movement, advancing cooperative finance worldwide. Through advocacy, education and more than 300 technical assistance programs in 90 countries, WOCCU advances financial inclusion and strengthens cooperative finance across diverse markets. Globally, more than 67,000 credit unions across over 100 countries serve more than 412 million people and hold over $3.8 Trillion (USD) in assets. Learn more at www.woccu.org.
Organization: World Council of Credit Unions
E-mail: lstanislawski@woccu.org
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