LAS VEGAS—NACUSO has named Goalsetter as the winner of its 11th Next Big Idea Competition. Mahalo Banking took second place. The companies won a vote after joining with three others in making presentations to the meeting, with attendees then voting.
Goalsetter is an “education first, goal-based” appthat offers a debit card that teaches saving and investing. The company said the app is based on a “learn before you burn” philosophy in which parents can automatically freeze their kid's card until a weekly financial quiz is taken. Once the quiz is taken, the card unfreezes again!
A Goalsetter rep described the company during the competition as a next generation fintech platform created specifically for the next generation.
In winning first place, Goalsetter took home a prize of $7,500, while Mahalo Banking won $2,500. The funds were provided by Co-op Solutions.
According to NACUSO, there were 39 applicants for the Next Big Idea competition, before the number was reduced to the five who made their presentations.
Here Come the Judges
Judges who quizzed each company representative after they made their presentations included Amber Harsin, CEO of CUProdigy; Jeffrey Staw, chief innovation officer with Open Technology Solutions; Miland Borkar, founder and CEO of Illuma Labs, and Karan Kashyap, co-founder and CEO of Posh Technologies.
The session was moderated by Brian Lauer, NACUSO general counsel and partner at Messick Lauer and Smith.
During their respective presentations, the other companies discussed their own offerings during the six minutes they were allotted. Here is an overview of what they had to say.
Mahalo Banking
Mahalo introduced an enhancement to its digital banking solution it said is designed for those who are “neurodiverse.”
The company’s presenter, Denny Howell, noted he is color blind, which got him and the company to think about the 15-25% of the U.S. population who are neurodiverse, which includes people with dyslexia, autism, ADD, ADHD, epilepsy, visuall sensitivity, and more.
In response, Mahalo developed a completely new version of its digital banking solution that can be used by everyone across the neurodiverse universe by adjusting settings in the app.
The app even has a setting for left-handers, who prefer to use their left thumb, so the app adjusts how information is presented.
Quilo
The company said it has built a platform that digitally syndicates an individual personal loan instantly and in real time so that multiple CUs can each take a fraction of the loan. Quilo said the solution helps to spread the risk.
One CU speaking on behalf of the company said the solution solves the “memberization” challenge with new loans. Quilo said the solution is also a terrific tool for managing liquidity by syndicating loans, and it can be used by credit unions regardless of asset size.
A CU that originates the loan takes 20% off the top with the 80% distributed to the CUs in the syndicate. CUs pay a set-up fee to join and then a monthly subscription fee.
Harness
Harness said it allows card issuers to “bring swipes to life.” The company said the $8 trillion interchange market is “broken” and CUs are paying the price, as in the card space CU card programs are falling to bottom of wallet.
Harness said it specifically empowers members to swipe their cards for a “purpose,” such as supporting community based charities, disaster relief, various savings options, etc. Funds also go toward prize offerings, all funded via the solution’s “round-up” feature, with the extra pennies going to whatever cause/reason the member has selected. “Bespoke programs can be built on our rails to future-proof your credit union,” the company said during the presentation. “From the member perspective, it’s your card, your way.”
The program also offers prizes and rewards in card programs, according to Harness, which leads to “surprise and delight experiences.”
BankSocial
BankSocial said its “big idea” is to launch CUs into the future by enabling credit unions to evolve from analog to digital DeFi, and specifically by making it easy to launch cryptocurrency exchange. There are no upfront integration costs, BankSocial said, adding integration is easy and fast and it’s a cobranded experience in which it takes compliance very seriously. The accounts are also all self-custodial, reducing risk to the credit union, the company said.
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