By Barb Lowman, CUDE, President of CUNA Strategic Services
In America, size matters. Bigger is better, right? A company that’s scaling, consolidating power, growing exponentially is a company that’s stronger and more powerful and more important than the little guys. At least that’s what we’ve been taught through modern corporate culture.
I’m here to offer another perspective. In the credit union industry, small credit unions (those with asset sizes below $100 million) are core to the "people helping people" philosophy that makes the system great. Small credit unions offer the choice, personalization, and hyper-local service that the industry was built on.
Small credit unions deserve as much attention and support as their bigger counterparts – and this includes strong fintech partnerships.
Large credit unions have the dedicated teams and budgets to closely vet multiple fintech vendors before picking one. Small credit unions often run lean, with one or two people wearing five hats each, trying to serve their members well while also keeping an eye on new financial technology, all while managing the same regulatory and compliance obligations as institutions ten times their size.
When a small credit union doesn't have the bandwidth to explore new fintech solutions or the staff to properly vet a vendor, they find themselves at risk of missing out on crucial new technology or (possibly a worse scenario) choosing the wrong solution or company for their needs. And because small credit unions are vital to our industry’s ecosystem, this scenario isn’t just a concern for small credit unions – it should matter to all of us.
CSS exists to connect credit unions with the fintech partners that can help them grow and serve their members better, across every demographic and every field of membership, not just the credit unions with the biggest balance sheets. A credit union serving a closed SEG with a few thousand members deserves the same access to smart, vetted fintech partnerships as one serving hundreds of thousands of members across the world. When it comes to credit unions, asset size shouldn't determine who gets a seat at the table.
One of the ways we put our beliefs into action is through our partnership with Curql to organize VentureTech, an annual fintech conference designed specifically for the credit union industry. VentureTech is the place to go to see what's coming, ask questions, and start building relationships with the companies shaping the future of financial services, without needing a big in-house team to make it happen.
VentureTech isn't just for credit unions with deep pockets – it's for any credit union that wants exposure to emerging fintech, to learn about new opportunities to solve institutional problems and advance their operating model. We even offer discounted attendance rates for small credit unions to help ensure everyone has access to new technology.
Small credit unions have proven time and again that they can move fast, adopt smart, and deliver deeply personal service – when they have the right partners in their corner. And that’s a big part of CSS’s mission, ensuring that every credit union, regardless of asset size or demographics, has access to strong fintech partners and the technology they need to succeed.
Want to learn more about how CSS supports credit unions of every size? Get in touch with our team.