Having worked in banking for nearly four decades, I've seen firsthand how technology has transformed our industry. Over the span of a couple generations, banking has evolved from all-paper transactions and face-to-face interactions in bricks-and-mortar branches to a cloud-based enterprise requiring neither paper nor physical locations.

Although some customers will always prefer face-to-face interaction, a growing number of younger customers see paying bills or transferring funds as just one more thing that can be done on a smartphone, a financial "status update."

To attract these customers, banks work to make virtual banking faster, more efficient and accessible with a broad range of tools or apps. My experience suggests credit unions are well-positioned for this new landscape, and may be able to lead their older, larger competitors.