Central Liquidity Facility (CLF)
The Central Liquidity Facility (CLF) is a mixed ownership government corporation within the NCUA. It is an instrument of the federal government that is owned by its member credit unions and managed by the NCUA board. The purpose of the facility is to improve the general financial stability of the credit union industry by providing member credit unions with a back-up source of liquidity.
Information regarding the CLF can be found on the NCUA website.
There is also a very informative FAQ section on the CLF portion of the NCUA website.
Vizo Financial can act as your correspondent and guide to the CLF by providing information about the facility, assisting in your efforts to join the facility and helping to manage collateral if you decide to borrow from the facility.
Joining CLF
The Corporate offers letters of credit to guarantee a credit union's financial obligation or contractual agreement with a third party.
Steps for joining the CLF are covered in NCUA CLF Operating Circular 20-03:
This document will walk you through the process of joining the CLF and contains most of the agreements needed to apply for membership. On the same web page listed above, you will find form 3881, which sets up ACH instructions for facility-related transactions, and form W-9. Both forms must be completed to obtain your membership.
In addition, a credit union must purchase capital stock to become a member of the CLF and borrow funds. There is a tool on the NCUA CLF website that can help your credit union estimate the capital stock you will need to purchase. You can access this tool here:
The NCUA recommends that your credit union contact the CLF prior to submitting an application for membership to review the process and obtain an estimate for CLF capital stock.
Collateral
Though a credit union does not need to pre-position collateral with the CLF, you should familiarize yourself with the CLF collateral process. The CLF requires a first-priority security interest in the collateral it accepts to back facility advances. This may mean putting subordination agreements or releases in place if there are multiple creditors to which your credit union has pledged collateral. In some cases, your credit union can use the collateral it has pledged to the Corporate. In addition, your credit union should become familiar with the CLF collateral margins table located on the NCUA CLF website:
Facility Advances
The process for a credit union member of the CLF to request an advance are detailed in NCUA CLF Operating Circular 20-02:
The CLF will provide advances for short-term, seasonal and protracted adjustment credits.