Stanford Federal Credit Union Eliminates Non-Sufficient Funds Fees for its Members

Joan Opp

Stanford Federal Credit Union, comprised of members from the Stanford University community and technology companies in the Bay Area such as Google and Meta, announced that effective April 1, it has discontinued non-sufficient funds (NSF) fees in its ongoing efforts to find new ways to give back to its members.
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“Stanford FCU is dedicated to improving the financial lives of our members by offering as much value as possible. Over the past five years we have refunded over $2.3 million in fees to our members,” noted Stanford FCU President & Chief Executive Officer Joan Opp. Opp continued, “Our total fee income is only 2% of our income compared to an average 8% of other financial institutions, and the NSF Fee is one of the few fees left to eliminate.”

Stanford FCU is also revising their entire overdraft protection program to further benefit its members, slated to go into effect in the coming months. The new program will enable members to opt-in to decide whether the credit union should pay for items if their account balance is insufficient. If a member opts-in to the new program, it will pay for checking, ACH and debit card purchases should an account go into a zero or negative balance. For transactions under $25, the charge will be paid with no overdraft fee. For purchases of $25 or more, the program will cover the cost of the charge, and the member will be charged a $25 fee. The new program will limit overdraft coverage to three transactions.

Stanford FCU also allows members to link their checking account to one other account such as a savings account. This service moves money from the savings to the checking account without a fee, should the member’s account accidentally go negative. Opp commented, “We have never charged members an Account Transfer fee, unlike what many financial institutions have been doing for years.”

For more information about Stanford FCU and its latest member offerings, visit sfcu.org.

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