EVANSVILLE, Ind.—A change in its product line-up led Evansville Teachers FCU to pay more than $2 million to members through their premium checking accounts during 2016.
The $2,059,168.74 returned to members through ETFCU’s premium checking accounts represents a 93% increase over their 2015 total—and a 178% increase over the two-year time period since the credit union began offering its high-dividend checking product, ETFCU reported.
Vertical Checking, ETFCU’s flagship product, offers members a 3% APY on balances up to $15,000. The $2-million figure represents money paid to members in the form of interest payments on checking deposits, reward points, and refunds of ATM fees charged by other financial institutions.
“Our mission is to provide optimal returns to our members. We do this through innovative products and services that provide real value on a monthly basis,” said ETFCU president and CEO Bill Schirmer.
Evansville Teachers FCU said it calculates the 2016 returned value from checking accounts total as follows:
• $751,746.53 paid through interest on checking accounts
• $1,133,145.00 paid in reward points earned on debit cards
• $174,277.21 paid in reimbursement of ATM fees charged by other financial institutions
Of the total that ETFCU returned to members in consumer checking account interest, $696,355.60, more than 92% was distributed to members with ETFCU’s Vertical Checking account. These members receive the account’s benefits when they meet basic usage requirements, the credit union said. Qualifying accountholders received a combined average of $161.59 in interest income and ATM fee reimbursements for the year.
In addition to their high dividend checking product, the credit union also provides Platinum Rewards Checking. This checking account offers reward points on debit card purchases, plus 500 bonus reward points each month basic requirements are met. Members can redeem their accumulated reward points for brand-name merchandise, travel, gift cards, and even cash back.
In October 2015, ETFCU added the ATM-reimbursement feature to both accounts.
As ETFCU’s total return continues to grow, the credit union said membership total has increased from 130,508 members in 2015 to 165,937 in 2016, a 27% growth rate.