The Rundown

• FedComp shifts focus to core data processing.
• Vantage Point FCU and Southern FCU benefit from FedComp'scustomizations.
• The vendor to work with state leagues on small credit uniontechnology projects.

After 30 years in business, the Fairfax, Va.-based core dataprocessing system provider FedComp Inc. made the decision tomove the 130 credit unions using its Internet banking productVirtualCU onto the Boise, Idaho-based Database Management Services'more modern HomeCU. That's left FedComp to put more resources intoits flagship product, the FedComp Platinum core data processor, aswell as add-on services the company has developed over theyears.

Originally written in DOS mode, FedComp's core data processingproduct launched in 1982, according to Bob Duff, CEO/founder forFedComp.Duff has worked in the credit union industry since 1974, and hisstaff members are industry veterans as well. Combined, FedCompstaff has just under 300 years of credit union industry experience,said Karen Rys, vice president of operations for FedComp.

“We made a conscious effort to build a team with experience inthe credit union industry,” Rys said.

Small credit unions are FedComp's forte. In the beginning, itonly served clients with less than $25 million in assets. Fiveyears ago, the company expanded to serve credit unions with lessthan $100 million in assets.

“We have a passion for small credit unions,” Duff said. “Ourmotto is to provide the same sense of community to credit unionsthat they provide to their members.”

The company's total number of credit union clients was at a highin the late 1980s at around 2,000, Duff said. It now has around900, and Duff attributes the fall to an onslaught of mergers.

“We peaked before the merger hay day,” Duff said. “The smallcredit unions are who we're serving, but they're also the creditunions that are merging. That's been our biggest externalchallenge.”

VirtualCU, designed to fulfill the earliest home banking needsof FedComp's credit union clients, came out in the late 1990s as awebsite that held a link to a home banking interface, where memberscould view and print their transactional history. A relationshipblossomed between FedComp and DMS in the early 2000s, and FedComplater realized DMS' HomeCU would be a better fit for VirtualCUusers. The 130 credit unions set to migrate onto HomeCU willcontinue to use Platinum simultaneously, and FedComp said it viewsthe change as a welcomed technology improvement for thoseclients.

“We have strong relationships with our clients, and they come tous regularly with ideas of what they'd like to add to theirpackages,” Rys said. “Sometimes, there's someone else in themarketplace that we can partner with in order to offer that tothem.”

Platinum's features include a virtual cash drawer and filingcabinet, credit bureau inquiry services, a teller system, loanapplication tracking capabilities, and inventory management andreconciliation services. Duff emphasized that the system ismodule-based and allows credit unions to purchase customized setsof features that best fit their needs.

One of Platinum's clients is the $27.9 million Hopewell,Va.-based Vantage Point Federal Credit Union, which signed on withFedComp in 2007. Vantage Point FCU President/CEO Violet West saidshe learned about FedComp while doing consulting work for theVirginia Credit Union League. At the time, FedComp was in themidst of a project with the league that entailed implementingtechnology at small Virginia credit unions.

West said her credit union values Platinum's custom reportwriter, which allows users to select desired fields and createcustom reports, the system's ease of use, and the fact it givestellers a full picture of each member on a single screen.

The $70.3 million, Houston, Texas-based Southern Federal CreditUnion began working with FedComp in 1988, when the credit uniondecided to move from a batch-based data processing system to aWeb-based system, according to CEO Jeanne Walker. Southern FCUOperations Coordinator April Baker, who joined the credit union in2001, said she likes that Platinum allows staff members to importmember profile photos, email members directly, select customizedcolor schemes and block specified content through the system'ssecurity settings.

Baker added that FedComp ensures its clients' voices are heardwhen it comes to system changes and updates.

“We can make suggestions about enhancements, and they'll takethem into consideration,” Baker said. “Sometimes they'll take youridea and expand on it themselves. For example, we asked if we couldprint from a certain screen, and they took that a step further anddeveloped several new printing capabilities. They're really open tomaking it more useful for their clients.”

Aside from the Platinum system, FedComp produces forms,stationery, and statement processing and marketing solutionsthrough FedComp Supply, a company it created with Norristown,Pa.-based vendor CU ink. FedComp said it's also committed toeducating clients by putting out a newsletter, and organizingtraining meetings and one-on-one training sessions.

“We believe in keeping our credit unions trained and up todate,” Rys said. “So we enable conversations between our creditunions and find out what kinds of enhancements would help them withtheir productivity.”

Duff said through its partnerships, such as the one it has withDMS, FedComp can help credit unions stay on the cutting edge oftechnology and successfully serve a young market. He added thatfrom his point of view, the innovations taking place at creditunions are continuing to grow.

“Technology is our biggest focus, and we're looking to put outtechnology that aligns with what younger folks want,” Duff said.“There's a lot of experimentation going on in credit unions. I'vereally been seeing a lot of risk-taking and new features.”

What's next for FedComp and its clients? The company said thanksto HomeCU, its credit union clients can now provide mobile and text banking services to their members. Rys addedFedComp plans to work with state credit union leagues on technologyprojects designed to help small credit unions go virtual.

“The level of service that young members are seeking issomething that credit unions need to keep up with,” Rys said. “Thebarrier for credit unions isn't always the dollars, it's theinternal capacity that's needed to develop it. We're working on howto get credit unions to stay true to the communities they serve butin a more virtual way.”