The World Council of Credit Unions (Woccu) has appointed Paul Andrews as its new vice president of international advocacy.
Andrews, who has experience in financial regulations, will be in charge of advocating on behalf of the global credit union and financial co-operative movement at the international level. He joins Woccu from the CFA Institute in Washington, where he was the managing director for research, advocacy and standards. Other past roles include secretary general at the International Organization of Securities Commissions, vice president of the Financial Industry Regulatory Authority, and senior special counsel at the US Securities and Exchange Commission.
In his new role, he will lead Woccu’s advocacy work in front of organisations such as the Basel Committee on Banking Supervision, the Financial Action Task Force, the International Accounting Standards Board, the Financial Stability Board, the EU, UN and G20.
Related: Co-ops and credit unions react to this year’s declaration from the G20
“It is imperative that member-owned financial co-operatives across the world have the ability to grow their financial inclusion efforts and reach more underserved populations without facing undue compliance issues caused by over-burdensome regulations,” he said. “I am pleased to help secure a future where those opportunities exist by leading World Council of Credit Unions’ International Advocacy team and working with our members to ensure they have a strong voice in front of the international standard setting bodies.”
“If you’re going to effectively advocate on behalf of credit unions at the international level, having relationships with those who set the standards is critical for success,” said Woccu president and CEO, Elissa McCarter LaBorde. “Paul is very familiar with the key international regulatory bodies, and I have every confidence he will continue our strong track record of reducing regulatory burdens for credit unions in the areas of prudential regulation, anti-money laundering, taxation and accounting standards before they arrive at the national level.
“Ensuring our member credit unions and financial co-operatives face reasonable compliance burdens is key to growing our movement and further expanding financial inclusion.”
