BALTIMORE, Md. – SSA Baltimore FCU was approved in October 2002 by the NCUA to expand its field-of-membership to include an underserved area in Baltimore, but the $260-million federal credit union recently honored state Commissioner Mary Louise Preis of the Division of Financial Regulation for her support of SSA Baltimore's initiative. SSA FCU said Commissioner Preis was an early supporter of the credit union's interest in serving the underserved and spoke in favor of it at credit union-sponsored functions, citing it as an opportunity to provide traditional financial services to the unbanked in the area. "We kept her in the loop from the get go, when we first began discussing our plans to expand our field-of-membership to serve this area. The Commissioner is a big proponent of spreading financial services to the unbanked, and we felt it important to keep her apprised," said SSA BFCU Vice President of Marketing Kevin Roland. As part of its initiative to serve the unbanked living in Baltimore, SSA Baltimore is working with neighborhood organizations and community associations to open Neighborhood Contact Offices (NCOs) in neighborhoods throughout the city. NCOs are non-cash outlets where members can open new accounts, apply for loans and conduct routine transactions. Two NCOs – one in a shopping center in southwest Baltimore and another in the Concord Baptist Church in northwest Baltimore -already opened in March. Three are planned to open later in the spring or summer. SSA BFCU also plans to partner with the neighborhood groups and community associations to offer financial literacy and money management programs. SSA Baltimore FCU has more than 42,000 members. -

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