LAS VEGAS—With COVID-19 being the “great accelerator” for innovation, PSCU president and CEO Chuck Fagan stressed the importance of speed within credit unions’ processes, and explained how the CUSO has been evolving in recent years to meet those new demands.
Speaking to more than 1,200 credit union attendees who made the trip to Las Vegas for the 2022 PSCU Member Forum, and to 500 watching virtually, Fagan outlined what the company has had underway and where it is headed.
“COVID-19 has been the great accelerator. And that continues to ring true today,” said Fagan, noting the in-person Member Forum was the first such event in three years. “Behaviors and preferences adopted by consumers as a result of the pandemic are here today, they are here to stay, and they are evolving…All things digital continue to accelerate innovation timeframes from years to months, and disruptors like faster payments and crypto continue to gain traction.”
Fagan praised CUs’ efforts over the last two years in reacting to changes in the market, changes with member behavior and changes in the economy.
“We are together in person at our Member Forum for the first time since 2019, and I think you'll agree it feels right,” said Fagan. “But clearly the world's in a different place than when we were last together. We have faced a pandemic, greater attention to social injustice throughout our country, the conflict in the Ukraine, economic and supply chain impacts, price increases…In these past two years credit unions have been on the front lines as financial first responders. On behalf of my PSCU colleagues I thank you for all that you've done.”
70% Growth
As credit unions have evolved, so too has PSCU, Fagan said, adding PSCU has grown by 70% or the last four years.
“The evolution of PSCU excites me,” he said. “We are focused on providing platforms that enable you to deliver the personalized connected experiences that your members now want. And we continue to make significant investments and forge the right partnerships to drive the fintech experiences that your members want.”
Fagan detailed the new solutions and partnerships PSCU has recently entered into, including with Amount, which will help streamline and speed up lending at credit unions via a BNPL solution. Fagan pointed out that cooperatives are increasingly competing with upstart digital lenders and banks that are spending and speeding up their own lending processes.
He also said PSCU is committed to helping credit unions better understand cryptocurrency and play in this space. PSCU Wednesday announced it has launched a new cryptocurrency microsite.”
The new partnership with Amount—a company that offers a full suite of end-to-end omnichannel consumer, small business lending solutions, including buy-now, pay-later—will address members’ new expectations on lending speed, Fagan said.
“Members have come to expect immediacy with everything, including from food delivery, for example,” Fagan said. “They expect to wait for anything, especially five to seven days to hear that they're approved for a credit card. We're very excited about having a partnership with Amount, which I'm confident is going to add tremendous value for our credit union members.”