 Tom Davis Trellance Cooperative Holdings, Inc., a leading provider of technology and solutions for credit unions, today announced the development of a new collaborative investment capability designed specifically for credit unions.
Currently referred to as the Investors Club, the initiative will provide participating credit unions with the expertise, resources and infrastructure to identify, evaluate, structure, execute and support strategic investments. The model is designed to give credit unions access to institutional-quality investment capabilities while allowing each institution to decide where, when and how much to invest. Credit unions increasingly rely on fintechs, CUSOs and technology providers for capabilities that support their competitiveness, member experience and long-term strategies. As these relationships evolve from vendor/customer to strategic partner, investor and owner, credit unions need greater access to the expertise and resources required to pursue investment opportunities. The Investors Club is designed to provide that capability without requiring credit unions to invest in every opportunity. Each investment will be evaluated on its own merits, and participating credit unions can choose whether to invest and determine the amount based on their individual strategy, risk appetite and financial objectives. By working together, participating credit unions can benefit from shared expertise, diligence, negotiating leverage, and operating resources while maintaining individual investment discretion. The model also allows credit unions of different sizes and with different investment strategies to participate without requiring identical portfolios. The Investors Club will consider both financial returns and strategic priorities, including gaining influence over critical capabilities, product direction and technology infrastructure, as well as supporting solutions that address the needs of the credit union industry. Credit unions also bring more than capital to these investments. Their members, market access, industry knowledge, operating expertise and distribution capabilities can create additional value for the companies they support. “Credit unions have an opportunity to put their capital to work in ways that strengthen the credit union movement and create value for their own organizations,” said Tom Davis, CEO of Trellance, Cooperative Holdings, Inc. “The Investors Club is a new model for collectively investing in innovation, building scale and shaping the future of financial services together.” Additional details about participation, investment opportunities and the platform’s structure will be announced as the initiative progresses. Visit Trellance.com/investors-club for updates and more information about the Investors Club.
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 Benjamin Conant Alkami Technology, Inc. (Nasdaq: ALKT) ("Alkami"), a digital sales and service platform provider for financial institutions in the U.S., today announced a new case study highlighting how Raiz Federal Credit Union (Raiz), a credit union serving over 78,000 members in El Paso, Texas, is using Alkami's Digital Sales & Service Platform to modernize its member experience and build a stronger foundation for growth.
Raiz has expanded its relationship with Alkami to encompass the full Digital Sales & Service Platform. The credit union is live with the Alkami Digital Banking Platform and MANTL Onboarding & Account Opening, and is implementing Alkami's Data & Marketing Solution to support more personalized and relevant member engagement, and identify opportunities to deepen relationships through targeted product offers. By connecting onboarding and digital banking across online, branch and call-center channels, Raiz is improving access to everyday banking, reducing manual work for employees, and giving its team more time to focus on financial guidance and relationship-building. "Alkami is helping us make banking more accessible, efficient, and connected for our members while preserving the Red Carpet service that defines Raiz," said Amy Krasikov, vice president of digital experience at Raiz. "We're proud to serve the El Paso community today, and we're excited to bring the warmth and care to people across the nation. Through digital banking, we aim to make our support accessible wherever and whenever it's needed. With Alkami, we've created a stronger digital foundation for today while continuing to find new ways to engage members with greater relevance and impact." With a lean technology team focused on strategic priorities, Raiz sought a modern, integrated platform that could improve member access, streamline operations, and support stronger relationships. The new case study highlights how the credit union is extending its member-first experience beyond the branch. With Alkami, Raiz has:
"Raiz is demonstrating how community financial institutions can use technology to make banking easier and more accessible without losing the human connection that sets them apart," said Benjamin Conant, chief product officer at Alkami. "By connecting onboarding, digital banking, and data and marketing through Alkami's Digital Sales & Service Platform, Raiz is giving members more convenient ways to bank, helping employees spend more time on meaningful guidance and building a stronger foundation for long-term growth." To learn more about how Raiz Federal Credit Union is building a digital-forward member experience with Alkami, read the full case study here. To learn more about Anticipatory Banking and the Alkami Digital Sales & Service Platform, visit here.  Ray Springsteen Abound Credit Union won the 2026 Excellence in Outreach Award for its 75 Acts of Kindness, a year-long community outreach initiative designed to demonstrate the credit union’s commitment to the people and communities it serves.
The initiative celebrated Abound’s 75th anniversary, with 75 unique acts of kindness completed throughout 2025. From paying for groceries, gas, coffee, and family outings to supporting hospitals, schools, food pantries, animal shelters, veterans, and senior citizens, each act created an opportunity to demonstrate kindness where it was needed most. “At Abound, we believe that being a good neighbor means showing up, giving back, and creating meaningful moments that improve the lives of others,” says Ray Springsteen, President & CEO of Abound Credit Union. “For more than 75 years, the Credit Union has been making more possible for Kentuckians. This initiative was a perfect way to celebrate and expand our impact.” The primary objective was to create positive, unexpected experiences for individuals across Kentucky while reinforcing the credit union philosophy of People Helping People. Kentucky’s Credit Unions officially announced the Excellence in Outreach award, along with the results of its additional 2026 recognition programs, earlier this month. More than 400 Abound team members participated in the initiative, making it one of the organization's most employee-engaged community outreach efforts. Team members contributed their time, energy, and passion to create memorable experiences for community members throughout the year. The Credit Union also provided $75,000 for the initiative, which was invested directly into communities and empowering employees to serve others. Recipients frequently expressed gratitude through tears, hugs, laughter, and heartfelt conversations. These personal interactions reinforced Abound’s commitment to improving the lives of those it serves. Learn more about Abound and its mission at AboundCU.com.  Austin Wentzlaff Wasatch Peaks Credit Union has selected Nook, a credit union service organization (CUSO) and Platinum HubSpot Solutions Partner, as its strategic HubSpot optimization partner.
Wasatch Peaks, a $700 million asset credit union, has already invested in HubSpot, establishing marketing assets and campaign infrastructure to support member engagement. However, challenges with data integration and CRM architecture limited the organization's ability to confidently automate marketing, personalize communications, and fully realize the platform's capabilities. "We recognized that our CRM architecture and data foundation were holding us back from using HubSpot the way we envisioned," said Tod Schroeder, Chief Marketing Officer at Wasatch Peaks Credit Union. "What stood out about Nook was their understanding of both the technology and how credit unions think and operate. They were honest about where we are today, what needs to be fixed first, and how to build toward the long-term vision." Through the engagement, Nook will provide strategic HubSpot consulting, technical optimization, and platform utilization guidance. The initial focus will be on stabilizing marketing operations, improving data quality and CRM architecture, and establishing a trusted foundation that enables more sophisticated segmentation, automation, and member engagement over time. "Wasatch Peaks has a clear vision for delivering more personalized member experiences," said Austin Wentzlaff, CEO of Nook. " Our role is to build confidence in the data, optimize what's already in place, and create a scalable foundation that allows HubSpot to become the connected member engagement platform it was intended to be. Nook's phased approach allows credit unions to generate value immediately while building the technical and operational capabilities required for long-term CRM success. MessagePay, a leading digital payments and communications platform for credit unions and community banks, today announced it has signed its 400th new financial institution customer. Through August 2026 alone, MessagePay has signed 86 new credit unions and community banks -- extending its position as one of the fastest-growing payments companies serving financial institutions in the country.
MessagePay's platform lets community banks and credit unions communicate with borrowers and collect payments over text message, web, phone, and email. Borrowers can pay by tapping a secure link or replying directly within a text conversation, without downloading an app or logging into online banking. “When borrowers can pay with a tap instead of a phone call or a trip to the branch, they actually pay on time,” said Greg Pesci, President and CEO of MessagePay. “That's what's driving adoption — institutions are seeing delinquencies drop and payment volume climb, and borrowers like the convenience.” Expanded two-way communication and new AI predictive analyticsAlongside its customer growth, MessagePay has expanded its two-way communication capabilities through MessagePay Direct, giving institutions a more direct channel for resolving payment issues with borrowers over text. The company has also introduced AI Pay+, an AI-powered predictive analytics tool built for asset recovery and collections teams. The new capability analyzes borrower behavior to forecast when and how a borrower is likely to pay. This gives collections teams a way to segment their portfolios and take action with far more precision than traditional delinquency buckets. “Our customers were already seeing results with the core platform,” said Brandon Alletto, SVP of Sales. “AI Pay+ and MessagePay Direct give their teams something more specific: a way to prioritize which accounts need a human touch and which ones don't.” Broad reach across institution types and sizesMessagePay's customer base spans institutions from Hawaii to Florida, ranging from credit unions with $10 million in assets to banks managing more than $20 billion. The company supports more than 30 core and third-party integrations. MessagePay has direct integration with multiple credit union and banking cores, including Fiserv, Jack Henry, Corelation, CU Answers, and Flex. In particular, MessagePay’s integration with Fiserv banking cores has allowed community banks to connect and utilize the MessagePay solution for the first time in 2026. "The range of institutions we work with, from small community financial institutions to billion-dollar ones, tells us this isn't a niche solution," Pesci said. "It's becoming a standard part of how financial institutions communicate with the people they serve." Industry Reports: For Senior Fraud, Credit Unions’ Best Defense May Be Knowing Their Members9/2/2026 Scams targeting older Americans are becoming more sophisticated, but credit unions have tools that technology alone can’t provide. By Marc Rapport Contributing Editor Key Points
June may have put a spotlight on senior fraud, but for credit unions and their older members, the problem doesn’t follow the calendar. Fraudsters are using government and business impersonation, romance schemes, cryptocurrency pitches, tech support scams and increasingly convincing artificial intelligence to pressure people to send money their way, often leaving financial institutions with only a narrow window in which to recognize what is happening and persuade a member to stop.  Brad Thaler Brad Thaler, head of legislative advocacy for America’s Credit Unions, said, for example, that consumers 60 and older were five times more likely than younger people to report losing money to a tech support scam in 2024, citing Federal Trade Commission data showing $159 million in reported losses among older consumers. “This is a serious problem that we regularly hear from credit unions about,” the veteran trade group executive said, adding that fraudsters often impersonate a government agency or business and use spoofed calls or text messages to convince a senior to release funds. The Scams They Are A’Changing The scamming techniques are becoming harder to recognize as technology improves fraudsters’ ability to sound, look and communicate like someone a member trusts. Raven Garner, assistant vice president for fraud and security at $4.8 billion Ascend FCU in Tullahoma, TN, said impersonation scams can involve financial institutions, government agencies, utilities or family members, while AI now helps criminals create convincing emails, texts and voice recordings, making prevention dependent on suspicious-activity monitoring, fraud-detection technology, employee training and member education working together.  David Techau Out west, Golden 1 Credit Union is seeing a similarly broad mix that includes romance and companionship scams, grandparent and family-emergency schemes, investments, cryptocurrency and tech support fraud, said David Techau, director of enterprise fraud at the $22.1 billion cooperative in Sacramento, CA. “We’re seeing scammers leverage social media, artificial intelligence, impersonation techniques, and emotional manipulation at a scale we haven’t experienced before,” Techau said. He said voice cloning and AI-generated content is adding credibility to schemes designed to create urgency, fear or trust before a victim has time to seek advice. And in Austin, Greater Texas Credit Union fraud manager Monica Caudle and fraud analyst Maricruz Gomez said romance scams remain among the biggest problems they see at their $995.4 million shop, while fraudsters’ online access to older members through social media and email has increased. They also cited bitcoin investment pitches, loan scams, an unusual scheme involving purported publishers offering to turn seniors’ lives into books or movies, and AI voice and image cloning used to convince victims that relatives are injured or in legal trouble and they must “act now.” The Credit Union Relationship: A Human Advantage Technology can identify patterns, but the credit union relationship can provide something a fraud model cannot: context about the person making the transaction. “We see financial activity in real time, but we also see people,” said Techau at Golden 1. “Our employees often know members personally and can recognize when something doesn't look right.” He said an employee who knows a member may recognize that an unusual withdrawal, branch conversation or contact-center call doesn’t fit the person’s normal behavior and can use that moment to ask another question before money leaves the account. That advantage becomes especially important because members caught in a scam may believe the fraudster rather than the employee trying to protect them. Thaler at ACU said he has heard from credit unions about members more inclined to trust an unknown voice giving instructions over the phone than the credit union employee standing in front of them. That illustrates why relationships, patience and the ability to slow a suspicious transaction can matter as much as the technology used to detect it. “That’s why legislation to allow financial institutions to delay suspicious transactions is so important,” Thaler added.  Ascend has added another tool with its voluntary Advance Consent Agreement for members 65 and older, which lets participating members designate someone the middle Tennessee credit union can contact if it suspects fraud or financial abuse. “That person is not given access to the member’s accounts or authority to make financial decisions,” Garner noted, describing the trusted contact instead as another layer of protection that preserves the member’s independence while giving Ascend another potential avenue for intervention when something appears wrong. More From Industry Reports
Asking the $30,000 Question Greater Texas saw the value of that human intervention when a member arrived at a branch seeking to withdraw $30,000 in cash and completed a questionnaire used for large withdrawals. The member denied plans to put the money into a bitcoin machine but said it was going into a kiosk, prompting a recently trained employee to recognize the warning sign, move the conversation away from the teller line and give the member time and privacy to reconsider what was happening. The member left without the cash and later returned to explain that someone claiming to be from the FBI had said the account was under investigation and instructed the member to withdraw the money and put it into a machine for safekeeping, Caudle and Gomez said. The $30,000 never left the account, an outcome that underscores their view that fraud prevention has to extend beyond a specialized department: “It’s a credit union-wide effort. It doesn’t just rely on the fraud team to prevent it,” the Greater Texas fraud fighters said in a joint email interview. Ascend, meanwhile, trains frontline employees to watch for sudden changes in transaction patterns, large or unusual withdrawals, unexplained wires, unusual payments to caregivers or third parties, changes in account ownership and members who appear confused or pressured by someone accompanying them.  Raven Garner When red flags appear, employees can ask questions, verify a transaction, escalate concerns internally and use available protective measures, an approach Garner summarized this way: “Ultimately, the most effective fraud prevention strategies combine technology with a personal, member-first approach.”
Creating More Time to Intervene The challenge is that protecting a member can collide with that member’s right to control and access his or her own money, particularly when the member has authorized the transaction and remains convinced it is legitimate. The Greater Texas fraud analysts said their cooperative must respect members’ ownership and privacy even after employees have warned them, while at Golden 1, Techau’s advice to consumers is deliberately simple: “The best defense is to slow down, verify requests independently, and never feel pressured to act immediately.” Thaler said that tension is one reason America’s Credit Unions supports recently introduced measures such as the STOP Senior Fraud Act, which he said would give financial institutions additional ability to delay suspicious transactions, along with the STOP Payments Fraud Act targeting check fraud. “Ensuring that credit unions have the tools to combat fraud is a top priority of America’s Credit Unions,” he said, while also calling for a broader federal consumer-education effort across multiple media channels, comparable in reach and persistence to the long-running Smokey Bear wildfire-prevention campaign. For credit unions, then, senior fraud prevention increasingly means combining technology that spots unusual behavior with employees who understand what to do when the alert involves a real person standing across the counter or speaking on the phone. Fraudsters may keep changing their methods, but the responses from these credit unions point toward a consistent defense: educate members before the scam arrives, train employees to recognize when something doesn’t add up and create enough trust, and enough time, for someone to ask one more question before the money is gone. “We have both an opportunity and a responsibility to help,” said Techau at Golden 1. “Protecting members' financial well-being is central to our mission, and that includes helping them navigate increasingly complex fraud threats.”  Lauren Culp Credit union CEOs and senior executives from across the country came together this week at the National Credit Union Foundation’s inaugural Financial Well-Being Exchange (FWBX). The FWBX is a curated executive convening structured around the exchange of ideas, vision, and future-focused insights from senior leaders shaping what’s next for financial well-being delivery.
This exclusive gathering has been created to help shape the future of financial well-being with credit unions nationwide. Representing 28 states with a combined $210+ billion in assets, the industry leaders attending bring diverse perspectives, experiences, and vision on how credit unions can deepen their impact on members and communities. “Credit unions across the country do extraordinary work to improve member financial well-being and drive impact,” said Lauren Culp, executive director of the National Credit Union Foundation. “And, what we know to be true is that credit unions are committed to always raising the bar and going further for their members. This week, we’re exploring all those ways we can go further together for the people and communities who need us.” The event approaches financial well-being through an enterprise lens, acknowledging that everything a credit union does—from its mission and strategy, to products and policies, to technology and culture—culminates in members who can achieve greater financial well-being. High-level themes and outputs from this event, which contains roundtable and advisory board components, will be published and used to inform the Foundation’s future pipeline of financial well-being work for credit unions nationwide. “The opportunity in front of us at the Exchange is much bigger than just the people in this room,” Culp said. “It has the potential to reshape financial well-being delivery for the entire financial services sector.” The Financial Well-Being Exchange is taking place Sept. 1–3, 2026 at the St. Regis Deer Valley in Park City, Utah. The Foundation thanks FWBX Signature Sponsor LEVEL5, and Impact Sponsors Nuuvia, and Zealyst for helping make this event possible. Senior credit union leaders interested in attending a future FWBX event can reach out to the Foundation at [email protected] to be added to the interest list. Telhio Credit Union Delivers Business-Focused Expertise with Advanced Treasury Management Solutions9/2/2026  Dina Shultz Telhio Credit Union’s business banking services has unveiled its new Treasury Management solution, geared toward small and medium enterprises. The revamped program, named ESSENTIALS, features a comprehensive business experience at a cost-effective flat rate.
Business owners work with Telhio relationship managers to streamline their operations, gaining flexibility and scalability to match their organizational goals. The revamped treasury management framework introduces benefits such as fraud protection and risk management, automated payments and ACH origination, among other premier banking tools. This emerging platform puts Telhio members at the forefront of their business, prioritizing transparency and efficiency through one consistent monthly fee with the option to bundle alongside new or existing business checking accounts. One simple package helps mobilize Telhio’s existing services into a comprehensive financial system that equips business owners with best practices that streamline and integrate all the anticipated products and services that serve them well. “ESSENTIALS aligns seamlessly with our vision for member-first banking,” said Dina Shultz, Chief Revenue Officer of Telhio Credit Union. “As a top SBA lender in Ohio, we are continually evolving our processes to equip and empower business owners with the necessary financial integrations that simplify their day-to-day.” For more information about ESSENTIALS Treasury Management solution, visit www.telhio.org/business/treasury-management. CheckAlt, a provider of integrated receivables and payment processing solutions, announced today a partnership with LoanPro, the modern lending and credit platform, to expand the receivables and payment processing capabilities available to LoanPro customers—giving lenders a more efficient way to process and reconcile inbound payments across paper checks and online banking bill pay.
While many lenders have modernized their loan servicing platforms, check payments—including paper checks generated through online banking bill pay—often still require manual processing and reconciliation. The partnership helps LoanPro customers streamline check payment workflows, reduce manual work, accelerate payment posting, and gain greater visibility into inbound payment activity. “LoanPro customers have been looking for a better way to manage check payments without disrupting their existing servicing environment. By partnering with CheckAlt, we’re giving customers a streamlined way to improve operational efficiency while enhancing the overall borrower and back-office experience,” said Charles Sweeney, CRO & COO at LoanPro. “Modern loan servicing requires modern receivables,” said Jason Schwabline, Chief Commercial Officer at CheckAlt. “Even as lenders modernize their servicing platforms, check payment workflows that support them often remain manual. Together with LoanPro, we're helping lenders expand their payment processing capabilities to reduce manual work, simplify reconciliation, and gain better visibility into payment activity.” Through the partnership, CheckAlt will support LoanPro customers with lockbox, electronic lockbox, remote deposit capture, and remote lockbox capabilities—helping lenders streamline inbound payment processing and reconciliation. Industry Reports: Could AI Give Smaller Credit Unions a New Kind of Scale? These Folks Think So.9/1/2026 AI could prove especially consequential for smaller and mid-sized credit unions because it offers something they have historically struggled to buy: scale without a corresponding increase in headcount. By Marc Rapport Contributing Editor Key Points
Smaller credit unions confront many of the same regulatory, technology, fraud, lending and service demands as institutions many times their size, but they have fewer people to divide among those responsibilities. That makes AI’s ability to multiply employee capacity potentially more significant for a smaller credit union than for a bank already equipped with large teams of analysts and specialists.  Linda Bodie Linda Bodie, CEO + Innovator at Element FCU in Charleston, WV, sees AI as a way to put capabilities resembling an analyst, researcher, writer and administrative assistant within reach of each of the 15 employees at her 4,375-member cooperative. “For small credit unions, AI isn’t primarily about replacing people. It’s about giving good people more capacity,” said Bodie, who has been at the helm of her Mountain State shop since 1998 and seen its assets grow to about $47.5 million. Todd Link, chief member services officer at $3.5 billion Dupaco Community Credit Union, joined the Dubuque, Iowa-based cooperative in 2014 and sees that AI-driven capacity emerging particularly in operations, where those tools can take over work that does not depend on the personal relationships at the center of the credit union model. “At this time, I see AI as one of the leading ways credit unions of any size can find back-office efficiencies,” said Link, who oversees member services for 182,000 members and its 616 employees.  Catherine Wright Extending Expertise Without Extending Payroll Catherine Wright, a consultant for Cornerstone Advisors focuses primarily on strategy, operations, governance and, most recently, AI, for her Arizona-based advisory and research firm. Wright said recent research conducted with The League of Credit Unions & Affiliates and its LEVERAGE solutions provider found internal productivity and knowledge-management tools already helping employees work more efficiently. Larger institutions can hire more specialists and dedicate larger teams to functions including marketing, fraud, lending and member support, while smaller shops must stretch existing employees across those responsibilities. “AI is going to help the smaller institutions close some of this gap by extending the capacity of their existing employees,” Wright said. Laura Ernzen, the league’s chief innovation officer, joined the organization in February 2024 and has served in her current role since then, helping lead innovation and growth initiatives through LEVERAGE, the service corporation for the league that serves credit unions in Florida, Alabama, Georgia and Florida. “It’s not about replacing people. It is about helping employees spend less time on administrative work and more time delivering value to members,” Ernzen said. More AI News From Industry Reports:  Laura Ernzen Starting Where the Risk Is Lower The most practical entry point may not be an autonomous lending engine or another highly visible member-facing deployment, but internal knowledge management where employees can search policies, procedures and operational guidance or draft and summarize documents. Wright said those applications can introduce employees to AI while limiting some of the concerns surrounding sensitive member information and automated decisions. “Enterprise knowledge management is going to be the best use case, I think, to start off with,” the Cornerstone consultant said, noting that employees also need time to learn prompting, understand AI’s limitations and become comfortable verifying its work. The experience can build confidence before a credit union expands into applications involving member data, lending, fraud or other higher-risk activities. Bodie said she would also begin with a secure AI employee and operations assistant connected to policies, procedures, product information and selected core data, allowing employees to find answers, understand member relationships and identify missing information. “Employees should be able to ask a secure internal assistant how to complete a process, what a policy requires or what steps apply to a particular member situation without searching through multiple manuals and folders,” the Element CEO said. Moving AI Into Lending and Member Service Lending was cited as an area that shows how AI could improve speed without transferring the ultimate decision away from people, since much of a loan’s processing time is consumed by collecting documents, entering information, calculating income and identifying missing items. Wright said AI can review submitted documentation, flag missing signatures, analyze financial statements and prepare summarized information before a credit union employee makes the final underwriting decision. Bodie sees similar potential in having AI read pay stubs and tax documents, calculate debt-to-income ratios, summarize credit reports, identify policy exceptions and organize underwriting packages. “AI shouldn’t replace the lender’s judgment. It should make sure the lender spends more time using judgment and less time moving information from one place to another,” she said.  Todd Link Link at Dupaco said agentic AI can push that support considerably further while operating continuously behind the scenes. “Agentic AI has the ability, depending on the credit union and its desire to leverage the technology, to support a loan from end to end 24/7, or to review unusual transactions in real time and close a card, order a new card, start a dispute, and provide status updates on delivery,” he said.
Combining Automation With Human Advantage Member service presents a similar balancing act because AI can answer simple questions, authenticate callers and direct inquiries without tying up employees, yet members may still want a person when the interaction becomes more complicated. Cornerstone’s Wright said some credit unions are finding a hybrid model more effective than attempting to automate the contact center completely, particularly for members uncomfortable with extended conversations with an AI agent. That distinction reinforces an advantage smaller credit unions should be careful not to automate away: relationships built on trust, flexibility and employees who understand their members. “The winning model isn’t AI instead of people. It’s human service made faster and smarter by AI,” said Bodie, the longtime innovations leader at Element. Ernzen at the League of Credit Unions & Affiliates similarly sees AI helping smaller institutions respond more quickly, personalize communications, identify potential fraud and make specialized knowledge available across the organization while preserving personal service. “Smaller credit unions already have an important advantage: strong member relationships,” she said. “AI can help them preserve that personal service while operating more efficiently and effectively.” Orchestration Could Determine the Payoff Affordability remains a central question because smaller credit unions generally cannot build proprietary AI platforms or maintain large technical teams, and adding separate vendors for every application can create its own cost and management problems. Wright recommends checking first with existing providers for AI capabilities already available or planned, then beginning with one or two high-value use cases and establishing governance before expanding. CUSOs, core processors, associations and other shared-service partners could also make sophisticated tools affordable by spreading development, security, integration and compliance costs across institutions. Bodie said smaller credit unions need secure integrations, permission controls and audit trails, but they do not necessarily need to own the underlying technology: “Small credit unions don’t need to own the technology. We need affordable access to the capability.” Link believes the larger opportunity ultimately lies in connecting agents rather than purchasing isolated AI features that remain trapped inside individual applications. “The power of a bot will only ever be that bot. But the power of a dozen bots creates exponential value,” the Dupaco executive said, arguing that orchestration can spread AI across many tasks, lower cost per use and reduce the burden associated with governing numerous disconnected deployments. Broadly speaking, he said, “These are not technologies of tomorrow; they are available and being leveraged today by determined credit unions leaning into AI.” |
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