Operating Assumptions and the Great 2021 Budget Challenge
Budget season is among the year’s most stressful and aggravating times under the best of circumstances. Layer on our current uncertainty regarding the economy, public health and election outcomes and the challenge begins to feel insurmountable.
Working From Home- For Now, or Forever?
John and Glen discuss the pluses and minuses of our extended WFH period and its implications for the future of the workplace. Also, how on earth does someone budget for 2021?
Finovate Fall- Best of Show, Key Themes, and Cool Ideas
The always intriguing Finovate conference followed the rest of society into the digital sphere last week, adapting its tried-and true model of seven-minute demos of cutting edge financial technology just slightly for the new format. While the buzz of a packed auditorium devouring live demos was missing, the ideas being pitched were as compelling as ever.
Digital Transformation and Consumer Psychology
Fintech thought leaders Brett King and Ron Shevlin share perspectives on taking transformation beyond buzzword status, pushing the right buttons to influence consumer financial health, and the disconnect between the stock market and the Main Street economy.
The Curious World of Checks and Coins
Of all the havoc the coronavirus has wreaked on daily life, disruptions to payments behavior hardly tops the average consumer’s list. Nonetheless these impacts are real, and they matter quite a bit to leaders of credit unions and other financial services firms.
The Way We Pay- Before and After COVID
Glen chats with the Atlanta Fed’s Claire Greene about the Diary of Consumer Payment Choice, including new data on behavior at the height of the pandemic. Also- PPP lending leaders, good and bad news for checks, and a caution flag on the payroll tax.
The Debate Continues- How Many Apps Should a Credit Unioan Offer?
A few weeks back John and Kevin initiated a spirited debate over the multiple tradeoffs baked into a credit union’s app strategy- user friendliness, functionality, ease of ongoing updates, etc. Check out our prior post for the first half of this conversation, particularly on whether it’s best to offer a single all-inclusive app addressing every banking need, or a compact ”everyday” app along with a series of others suited for less frequent needs like mortgage applications.
Seizing the Growth Opportunity for Mid-Sized Credit Unions
Last month I wrote about how credit unions’ stagnant market share of 7% of US consumer deposits should not be acceptable to industry leaders. Our member growth stats have been decent, but what really matters at the end of the day is Primary Financial Institution (PFI) status- the goal is for a bank or credit union to establish itself as the centerpiece of daily financial life, the first place a consumer turns when financial help is needed.
FedNOW… in 2023? The Allure of Instant Payments
The Federal Reserve stirred the pot in 2018 when it requested comments on its offering a real-time payments network, since branded as FedNOW. Credit unions and community banks encouraged the Fed’s entry into the real-time market as a way to ensure widespread access to this important new capability.
How Many Apps Does a Credit Union Need?
Financial technology can be complicated stuff- and anyone who claims there are easy answers to the challenges facing credit unions probably hasn’t analyzed the issues closely enough. Faced with complex problems, well-informed people can reach different conclusions. A great example of this came recently when BIG’s leaders traded thoughts on how credit unions should approach their mobile app strategy.