This Saturday, June 15, is World Elder Abuse Awareness Day. Each year, older bank customers lose approximately $2.9 billion to fraud, but it is suspected that number is drastically underestimated because only 1 in 44 seniors report financial abuse. “Scammers are always developing new ways to rip people off, and sadly, they often target our seniors for numerous reasons,” said Bruce Whitehurst, VBA president and CEO. “Sadly, almost 90% of the financial abuse committed against older Americans is at the hands of someone they know and trust.”

Bankers across Virginia participate in Safe Banking for Seniors, a program sponsored by the American Bankers Association, that works to combat this growing problem. This program provides free resources and tools for bankers to use with their senior customers and their caregivers.

DeMarion Johnston, VBA General Counsel, recently wrote an article for Richmond Family Magazine that shares strategies to help seniors stay secure. The article includes tips for seniors and their caregivers as well as ways to identify the signs of elder financial abuse. You can read her article here. VBA Endorsed Provider CRA Partners recently published an article, "Engaging Your Elderly Customers," that focuses on ways your bank can engage with your elderly customers and why this engagement should be a priority.

Due to the success of the VBA’s February Elder Financial Exploitation Seminar, we will be holding this event again on September 9, from 10:00 am - 2:00 pm. This event is designed to help you and your financial institution meet the provisions outlined in the Senior Safe Act and will include: 

• Free resources that the American Bankers Association Foundation developed to help bankers educate older customers, their families and caregivers on ways to prevent and address elder financial exploitation
• Information and resources from the Virginia Department for Aging and Rehabilitative Services and Adult Protective Services (APS)
• Training on how to identify and report elder financial exploitation and what to expect in the reporting process
• Tools to partner with APS and law enforcement.

Learn more and register for this seminar here.

If you suspect elder financial abuse is happening to a family member or loved one, please make a report to the Adult Protective Services (APS) unit of one of the 119 local departments of social services or call the toll-free, 24-hour APS hotline at (888) 832-3858. Reports can be made anonymously.

American National Bank & Trust Co.
Jeffrey W. Farrar – Chief Operating Officer, Executive Vice President

C&F Bank
Charles Payne – Vice President, Construction Underwriter

First Bank & Trust Co.
Rodney Quesenberry – Vice President, Commercial Lender

First National Bank
Kyle Andrews – Assistant Vice President, Branch Manager
Shirley Brooks – Assistant Vice President, Collections Officer
Melissa Campbell – Vice President, Branch Operations Manager, Branch Security Officer
Romonda Davis – Vice President, eCommerce Relationship Manager
Ben Giese – Assistant Vice President
Laura Holt – Bank Officer
Tara Morgan – Bank Officer
Jimmy Murphy – Assistant Vice President, Branch Manager
Courtney Woody – Assistant Vice President, Mortgage Loan Originator

Powell Valley National Bank
Ashley Hammonds – Assistant Vice President, Commercial Loan Administrator
Jason Laster – Vice President, Director of Information Technology
Melody Lovell – Assistant Vice President, Senior Loan Administrator
Sarah Moore – Assistant Vice President, Mortgage Loan Department

Taylor Bank
Hanna Ford – Operations Supervisor
Eureka Herring – Electronic Services Manager

Perspectives from core providers on where the financial customer experience is heading. (ABA Banking Journal)

Baby Boomers know their banks well. These older consumers could be your biggest boosters as younger generations increasingly look to family and friends for advice when choosing a new financial institution. Though Boomers and Millennials may be at different lifecycle points, good service spans the generations. (The Financial Brand)

In the April/May American Bankers Association Washington Update, ABA President and CEO Rob Nichols discusses the growing consensus that something must be done to address the cannabis conundrum affecting banks as the debate continues on whether cannabis should be legalized at the federal level.

Being a board member is a hard job — ask anyone who has ever been one. Company directors have to understand the nature of the business, review documents, engage in meaningful conversation with CEOs, and give feedback while still maintaining positive relationships with management. This is about to change, thanks to machine learning and artificial intelligence. (Harvard Business Review)

Wire fraud involving bank customers is exploding, with a recent report finding that bank deposit accounts are the targets of over $1 billion in wire fraud attacks annually. Here, VBA Endorsed Provider ABA Insurance Services explains how frontline personnel are in the best position to both spot and prevent wire fraud.

There’s an old saying, "You don’t know what you don’t know," and that is certainly true when it comes to marketing initiatives meshing with the world of fair lending. Margaret Dolinger, of VBA Endorsed Provider TCA, explains how marketing has been elevated in prominence in the Interagency Fair Lending Exam Procedures as a high-risk form of fair lending risk.

Over the last several years, the concept of fintech has gone from banking and digital currencies to something much broader. In this article, VBA Endorsed Provider TSYS discusses how today's banks are at a true intersection of the payments industry and the technology industry.