The CU2.0 Podcast

Robert McGarvey
  • 5.0 (10)
  • Non-Profit
  • Updated Weekly

This podcast explores contemporary, critical thinking and issues impacting the nation's credit unions. What do they need to be doing to not just survive but prosper? 

  1. 1d ago

    CU 2.0 Podcast Episode 414 Student Choice CUSO Introduces Employer Choice Small Dollar Loans for Employees

    Send us Fan Mail The Student Choice CUSO, built around student loans, is expanding and now has introduced a program that will enable credit unions to issue small dollar, emergency loans to members with no credit check. These are not payday loans.  Interest rates are capped at 18% per NCUA policies. How can this be?  On the show is Scott Patterson, ceo of Student Choice, and the episode starts with a view into the current state of student loans and the big changes that are transforming the market. But Patterson came on the show to talk up the new Employer Choice program that will enable credit unions to make small dollar loans to employees of SEGs and to do so with little risk. What kind of voodoo is this? Patterson explains and it’s definitely not voodoo.The key is that the lending is tied into the employee’s payroll system.  Yes, there is no credit check but “instead [there are] employment-based underwriting factors, including job tenure, income stability, and employer characteristics.” Patterson elaborates on this in the show. The first credit union up with Employer Choice is Affinity Plus Credit Union in Minnesota which, Patterson indicated,has started by offering the program to its own employees. Other credit unions, says Patterson, want to start by offering the program to SEGs who will set this up as an employee benefit.  So, says Patterson, this has the potential to become a new member acquisition tool. Remember this: estimates are that half of American families do not have $1000 on hand for emergencies.  A friction-free emergency loan program just might be the life raft many families need and, says Patterson, credit unions can play a big part in helping out those families in need - and doing so at small risk and also low interest rates. Listen up. Like what you are hearing? Find out how you can help sponsor this podcast here. Very affordable sponsorship packages are available. Email rjmcgarvey@gmail.com     And like this podcast on whatever service you use to stream it. That matters.     Find out more about CU2.0 and the digital transformation of credit unions here. It's a journey every credit union needs to take. Pronto

  2. Jul 15

    CU 2.0 Podcast Episode 413 Making Video Magic with Storyfi, the New CUSO of the Year

    Send us Fan Mail Meet Storyfi - the NACUSO New CUSO of the Year for 2026.   When I saw the press release I had to get Nick Olexa, CEO of Storyfi, a Michigan based CUSO owned by six Michigan credit unions. What Storyfi is doing is important - it’s harnessing video to help credit unions tell their stories and it’s working within credit union budgets. That matters because, nowadays,  video is the globe’s communication tool of choice.  Whether it’s a 7 second video on Facebook or a 3 hour video on Netflix, video genuinely is how the world tells and communicates its stories and, frankly, credit unions had been lagging at this. An upshot is that, in the main, credit union marketing has been blah. Storyfi’s purpose is to reverse that reality.  To really get credit union stories told well. Understand: every credit union has a story.  So does every CUSO.  Most of the stories revolve around solving problems and, often, working through adversities.  So these are good, compelling, human stories.  And in video they shine. Since its 2023 founding, Storyfi has worked with around 140 organizations to tell their stories. On the show, Olexa tells Storyfi’s origin story, the kinds of videos it creates for customers, and why all this really matters in thinking of the credit union future. Listen up. Like what you are hearing? Find out how you can help sponsor this podcast here. Very affordable sponsorship packages are available. Email rjmcgarvey@gmail.com     And like this podcast on whatever service you use to stream it. That matters.     Find out more about CU2.0 and the digital transformation of credit unions here. It's a journey every credit union needs to take. Pronto

  3. Jul 13

    CU 2.0 Podcast Newsflash: Is Now the Time for the Safe Banking Act to Become Law

    Send us Fan Mail Is the country finally ready for a safe banking act that in effect legalizes cannabis businesses at the federal level? In recent years multiple bills doing essentially that were passed by the House of Representatives only to be buried in a Senate committee that never reported it out for a floor vote. There’s a new House bill in play and this time may be the charm, says Terry Mendez, CEO of Safe Harbor and a past podcast guest.  Safe Harbor has provided the tools credit unions to offer cannabis banking services since it opened in 2015.   According to Safe Harbor, the current bill would: Bar federal banking regulators from prohibiting or discouraging banks from serving state-legal cannabis businessesBar regulators from terminating or limiting a bank's deposit insurance because it serves a cannabis clientCreate a safe harbor from criminal prosecution, liability, and asset forfeiture for banks and their officers/employees serving legitimate state-sanctioned cannabis businesses, while preserving banks' right to decline that businessExtend protection to ancillary businesses serving cannabis operators, including lawyers, landlords, and vendors By the way, the American Banking Association has come out in support of the act.  In a letter to Senate leaders ABA said the bill would “provide important legal and regulatory clarity” and “address a significant challenge facing American businesses, our communities, and the banks that serve them.” On the show Mendez elaborates on why he believes the bill has a good chance of becoming law. Listen up. Like what you are hearing? Find out how you can help sponsor this podcast here. Very affordable sponsorship packages are available. Email rjmcgarvey@gmail.com     And like this podcast on whatever service you use to stream it. That matters.     Find out more about CU2.0 and the digital transformation of credit unions here. It's a journey every credit union needs to take. Pronto

  4. Jul 8

    CU 2.0 Podcast Episode 412 Jack Henry and SELCO on Fraud Trends You Need to Know Today

    Send us Fan Mail Title this show everything you need to know about fraud today but have been afraid to ask. Start with this: Fraud is big and getting bigger. That is the worrisome message delivered by Rene Perez, a fraud expert with Jack Henry, and seconded by Stephanie Ziegler, director of financial investigations at SELCO, a $2.8 billion credit union headquartered in Oregon. Perez is on the show to discuss Jack Henry’s new Financial Crimes Defender tool and Ziegler and SELCO are early adopters and she tells why. Much of the show is devoted to discussing trends in financial institution fraud - and the criminals just keep getting slicker and more sophisticated. Credit unions can - and are - successfully fighting back but a key realization is accepting that the fraud tactics keep changing. Nowadays, for instance, a huge problem, said Perez, is that criminal organizations are seeking to implant crooked employees in financial institutions and fintechs.  Perez and Ziegler discuss their organizations’ defenses against this. Another mushrooming trend: account takeovers are epidemic. The bottomline reality: fraud is an immense problem for all credit unions - and what you don’t know can indeed hurt you. Listen up. Like what you are hearing? Find out how you can help sponsor this podcast here. Very affordable sponsorship packages are available. Email rjmcgarvey@gmail.com     And like this podcast on whatever service you use to stream it. That matters.     Find out more about CU2.0 and the digital transformation of credit unions here. It's a journey every credit union needs to take. Pronto

  5. Jul 1

    CU 2.0 Podcast Episode 411 Travis Credit Union CEO Kevin Miller on Why Bankers Make Good CU CEOs

    Send us Fan Mail Can a banker successfully transition into a senior role in a credit union?   Can a credit union deploy a financial wellness initiative that also works as a competitive edge in marketing? Kevin Miller, CEO of $5.7 billion Travis Credit Union in Northern California, is on the show today and he is guilty of that banking background but he has logged 4+ years as Travis CEO. And he also strongly believes that not only are financial wellness initiatives a key part of a credit union’s doing good in its communities, they also are a competitive edge against both mega banks and community banks. As for Miller’s past work experience, he logged 4+ years at regional bank TCF as EVP of retail banking, 2 years at Santander, 4 years at BMO, and 6 years at Bank of America. A stint at a fintech rounded out his background. In the show he explains why he jumped into a credit union and why hiring bankers is good business for a credit union. Listen up.  Like what you are hearing? Find out how you can help sponsor this podcast here. Very affordable sponsorship packages are available. Email rjmcgarvey@gmail.com     And like this podcast on whatever service you use to stream it. That matters.     Find out more about CU2.0 and the digital transformation of credit unions here. It's a journey every credit union needs to take. Pronto

  6. Jun 24

    CU 2.0 Podcast Episode 410 The Credit Union of the Future Meets AI - BoxD CEO Nenuca Syquia Explains

    Send us Fan Mail Two threads run through this show: the human impacts of AI and the credit union of the future. Ultimately the threads are connected.  If a credit union is its people, what is it when AI does an increasing amount of the work in a credit union? On the show to explore these ideas is Nenuca Syquia, CEO of BoxD, “Better Organizations by Design,” a Silicon Valley consultancy. Herself a longtime credit union member, Nenuca is convinced there are important roles for credit unions to play in our lives in the future - and part of getting there is asking and exploring tough questions such as what happens to our people as agentic AI takes over more and more tasks? What happens indeed? Be prepared to mull on very big ideas as you listen. Listen up. Like what you are hearing? Find out how you can help sponsor this podcast here. Very affordable sponsorship packages are available. Email rjmcgarvey@gmail.com     And like this podcast on whatever service you use to stream it. That matters.     Find out more about CU2.0 and the digital transformation of credit unions here. It's a journey every credit union needs to take. Pronto

  7. Jun 17

    CU 2.0 Podcast Episode 409 Instant Payments Have Come to Smaller Credit Unions

    Send us Fan Mail When will instant payments come to smaller credit unions? Perhaps the better question is: Will instant payments ever come to smaller credit unions? On the show are Bob West, CEO of CUSO CU*South, which serves  some 360 credit unions (in 42 states, not just the south), and Keith Riddle of Payfinia, which has launched an instant payment platform that integrated with CU*South’s technology - meaning it’s straightforward for a CU*South customer to integrate into Payfinia’s tools. Now get this: most CU*South credit unions are smaller institutions.  Lots are under $350 million in assets. What might have seen a dream - available only to the likes of Chase and Navy Fed - now is available to small institutions. Does it matter? Will members use this instant payments technology? Instant payments are a reality - that’s a fact in today’s immediacy economy.  Credit unions need to climb aboard this train.   Listen up Like what you are hearing? Find out how you can help sponsor this podcast here. Very affordable sponsorship packages are available. Email rjmcgarvey@gmail.com     And like this podcast on whatever service you use to stream it. That matters.     Find out more about CU2.0 and the digital transformation of credit unions here. It's a journey every credit union needs to take. Pronto

  8. Jun 10

    CU 2.0 Podcast Episode 408 Raisin's Alastair Wood Brings High Yield Savings Accounts to Credit Unions

    Send us Fan Mail How does a lawyer - by education and employment history - become a top executive at fintechs?   Good question.  But here’s another one: how can a fintech help credit unions win members for savings accounts paying in the vicinity of 4% APR? On the show is Alastair Wood, CEO of Raisin, a fintech that helps credit unions market innovative products - high yield savings included - to attract new members. Understand, Raisin does essentially all the lifting involved in marketing and opening new accounts for new members.  Memberization included.   Raisin, by the way, is relatively new to the US market. But it has a long history in Europe. This episode starts with Wood explaining why, just maybe, a trained lawyer is an ideal leader for a fintech, especially one operating in a highly regulated environment. Wood, by the way, traces his hands on involvement in fintechs and credit unions back to a multi year stint at Silvur, whose CEO, Rhian Horgan is a past CU 3.0 Podcast guest.   Listen up. Like what you are hearing? Find out how you can help sponsor this podcast here. Very affordable sponsorship packages are available. Email rjmcgarvey@gmail.com     And like this podcast on whatever service you use to stream it. That matters.     Find out more about CU2.0 and the digital transformation of credit unions here. It's a journey every credit union needs to take. Pronto

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Ratings & Reviews

5
out of 5
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About

This podcast explores contemporary, critical thinking and issues impacting the nation's credit unions. What do they need to be doing to not just survive but prosper? 

Information

  • Creator
    Robert McGarvey
  • Years Active
    2019 - 2026
  • Episodes
    517
  • Rating
    Clean
  • Copyright
    © 2026 The CU2.0 Podcast
  • Show Website
    The CU2.0 Podcast

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