New NCUA Guidebook Can Help Credit Unions Ride the Digital Wave

August 2016

Publication Covers Strategies to Provide Better Service, Build Membership

ALEXANDRIA, Va. (Aug. 8, 2016) – Digital banking is no longer the wave of the future; we’re riding the wave now, and the National Credit Union Administration has a new guidebook to help credit unions better meet members’ needs for these services.

Going Digital: Strategies for Providing Digital Services, now available on NCUA’s Small Credit Union Learning Center, provides step-by-step instructions on creating a strategic plan for analyzing members’ needs and tailoring digital products to meet those needs. The guidebook also details potential advantages and disadvantages to members and credit unions.

“Members want greater convenience at less cost, and credit unions need to be prepared to provide mobile services in a way that retains their personal relationship with those members,” Office of Small Credit Union Initiatives Acting Director Martha Ninichuk said. “This is particularly important to credit unions’ efforts to attract new, younger members. We’ve created a resource guide that explains both the how and the why of offering digital financial services.”

Going Digital also covers the elements of an internal analysis credit unions should perform when considering adopting mobile services, including:

Costs of offering services and whether they will pay for themselves;
Providing adequate online security;
Training staff to use and promote services to members;
Preparing for changes in the organizational structure; and
Managing growth generated by the services.

NCUA’s Office of Small Credit Union Initiatives fosters credit union development and the effective delivery of financial services for small credit unions, new credit unions, minority depository institutions and credit unions with a low-income designation.

The NCUA is the independent federal agency created by the U.S. Congress to regulate, charter and supervise federal credit unions. With the backing of the full faith and credit of the United States, the NCUA operates and manages the National Credit Union Share Insurance Fund, insuring the deposits of more than 124 million account holders in all federal credit unions and the overwhelming majority of state-chartered credit unions. The NCUA also protects consumers and educates the public on consumer protection and financial literacy issues.