The World Council of Credit Unions (Woccu) has published its 2025 Global Regulatory Update, which warns that credit unions must remain vigilant in protecting their co-operative structure.
Woccu says 2025 will be “a critical year” for credit union advocacy worldwide, with emerging technologies, an unprecedented number of new governments, and the International Year of Cooperatives.
“Establishing appropriate regulations that enable the co-operative model, support financial access and foster economic growth has never been more important,” its update says.
Some 60 countries went to the polls last year, bringing new governments and changes to regulatory bodies around the world – and Woccu says credit unions must engage them with effective advocacy campaigns, warning that “the credit union and financial co-operative tax-exempt status present in many countries may be under review”.
With 2025 being the International Year of Cooperatives, Woccu encourages credit unions to use this opportunity to “bring greater awareness to the impact credit unions and other financial co-operatives have worldwide”.
“One of the greatest challenges at national and international levels is ensuring policymakers understand the mission and effectiveness of credit unions” its update adds. “Advocating for appropriately tailored regulations that reflect the size, complexity, risk and structure of a credit union is only possible if lawmakers and regulators understand our model.”
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Woccu is also encouraging credit unions to work with national trade associations to identify key regulatory priorities, and to engage members to share their credit union experience with policymakers.
The update also covers regulatory issues such as digitisation, new technologies and climate-related financial risks.
AI is likely to be regulated in coming years and Woccu advises credit unions to ensure they are compliant and stay abreast of new risks and evaluation tools as they adopt the technology.
Recent AI regulatory developments include a Financial Stability Board (FSB) report, which warns that AI could make the financial sector more vulnerable. Meanwhile, the EU’s 2024 AI Act specifically lists credit scoring and denial of consumer loans in the “high risk” list of categories.
The update highlights climate-related risks to the global banking system, with the Basel Committee expected to finalise a disclosure framework in the first half of 2025.
“While the proposed climate-related financial risks and other climate-related disclosures are intended for internationally active banks, many national governments are incorporating international standards and guidance into their local laws with limited or no deviation for smaller or alternative financial institutions,” it reads. “Preparing your credit union for natural disasters, understanding the impact to its balance sheet and the best way to support members is important to share with regulators as they discuss disclosure and risk-mitigation methods at a national level”.
In terms of strengthening individual frameworks, the update points out that “many countries are facing significant challenges to strengthen their national regulatory framework for credit unions”. Woccu sees the IYC as “an important advocacy opportunity to ensure national governments are aware of the flexibility to tailor international standards for financial cooperatives at a local level and ensure the needed regulations are in place for a strong regulatory framework.”
Woccu adds that its international credit union network can be a key tool for credit union apexes to share regulatory best practices and examples.
“The ongoing education and advocacy efforts of Woccu and its individual member countries and regions are critical to ensure a regulatory environment that allows credit unions to maximise their positive impact to local communities,” reads the update.
“Sharing best practices, understanding regulatory developments and ensuring new policymakers understand the credit union difference is essential for long-term growth. IYC25 reminds us that our co-operative model is part of a larger voice and vital to our efforts for economic growth and financial access.”
