San Francisco Fire Credit Union completed its conversion to Corelation, Inc.'s KeyStone core system without a single associate onsite – the first core conversion to ever take place completely remotely, according to a Corelation news release.

SFFCU, which has $1.3 billion in assets and 72,000 members, had originally intended to convert to Corelation's open platform in April, although the pandemic delayed implementation of the core processor, which boasts "unrivaled granularity, transparency and ease of access."

But SFFCU's conversion was the company's first in the coronavirus era and required the company to come up with new techniques to accommodate the remote conversion. For example, Corelation added a "dispatcher" role to its project team, tasked with logging and disseminating questions and concerns to the appropriate stakeholders. The team also checked in more frequently and dedicated video lines to "stay in close personal touch throughout the event."

"I am proud of SF Fire Credit Union's accomplishment, and grateful for the collaborative relationship we've formed with Corelation as a key and critical business partner," SFFCU President/CEO Kathy Duvall said in a statement.

While Fiserv DNA received the top ranking among credit unions with more than $1 billion in assets, Corelation's KeyStone got high marks among credit unions between $500 million and $1 billion, according to CUCollaboration's 2018 core processor rankings. However, Corelation said it's expanding its footprint in the billion-dollar space, with SFFCU marking the company's 96th total conversion.

The San Diego-based core provider has recently converted Achieva Credit Union ($1.7 billion, Dunedin, Fla.); Cross Valley Federal Credit Union ($160 million, Wilkes-Barre, Pa.); Wheelhouse Credit Union ($283 million, San Diego), among others.

"To me this business is all about relationships and partnerships," Corelation President/CEO Theresa Benavidez said in a statement. "SF Fire trusted our team to guide them through this event. The smooth implementation was a result of the hard work put in by both organizations."