For the 2025 edition of the annual Finopotamus “Holiday Tech Wish List” feature, we sat down with forward-looking fintech and credit union executives who shared their tech hopes and forecasted market realities for 2025. Due to a significant number of intriguing responses, this year’s Wish List will be presented in five consecutive installments.
Part 4 features insights from Happy Money, Members Development Company, Jack Henry, Member Driven Technologies (MDT), Shastic and Candescent.
By W.B. King
Wishing for Credit Unions to Invest in Technology-Enabled Solutions That Support a Better Borrowing Experience
When Happy Money’s Chief Revenue Officer Matt Tomko was contemplating his 2025 wish list for credit unions, he had a two-pronged response: “Investing in technology-enabled solutions that support a better borrowing experience for their members, while also enabling them to grow as member-focused financial institutions (FIs).”
The Torrance, Calif.-based consumer finance company’s business model was designed to empower people to achieve their goals through responsible lending. With 125 employees, 47 of which are tech-facing, the fintech currently partners with 13 credit unions.
“The credit unions who will be best positioned for the future are the ones who are willing to look outside the box. This might include looking beyond traditional originations partnerships to leveraging platforms that allow for participations and forward-flow opportunities,” Tomko told Finopotamus. “Participations can allow for greater liquidity and portfolio diversification for yield, return and resilience.”
For more credit unions to realize his wish, Tomko said they will need to embrace greater diversification in their balance sheets, which, he added, will ensure they are well-positioned to traverse the ever-evolving economic landscape.
“In recent years, credit unions’ balance sheets have been oversaturated with indirect auto loans, leading to challenges given the thin margins and disintermediation that auto lending presents,” he noted. “That’s why credit unions should look to implement diverse loan types with attractive risk adjusted returns, leveraging digital-first acquisition tools through a build, buy, or partner model.”
Looking to 2025, Tomko hopes credit unions do what he said they do best “showing up for members” no matter the need or situation. “Credit unions should prioritize tools to help members better manage their budgets and solutions that help them optimize cash flow and reduce the burden of high-interest debt,” he continued. “Technology can be a strong enabler here, but it’s most important to start with the strategy and then find the technology that can help fulfill it.”
Wishing for a Reciprocal Deposit Platform for Credit Unions
“Banks have had this tool for close to 20 years, but now credit unions can level the playing field. It can allow credit unions to offer NCUA insurance on member accounts for millions of dollars per member,” Members Development Company (MDC) President and CEO Jeff Kline said of his wish.
“This can be powerful for business accounts, wealth management, municipal deposits (for those that can offer that) and for regular members who might want to keep most of their savings at the credit union,” he added. “This is a platform that should become a foundational asset for the industry, and it is completely up to us to collaborate and leverage this solution.”
The Madison, Wis.-based company, which has 77 credit union clients, works to better serve members and enhance the credit union movement's potential for success.
For his wish to be realized, he told Finopotamus, credit unions need to collaborate to create scale on platforms like ModernFi. In July 2024, the New York City-based fintech partnered with MDC, creating the first deposit network for credit unions.
“In the minds of credit unions, over the past six to seven years, fintechs have evolved from competitive threat to collaborative partner. Yes, there are still some that are truly competitors, but many need us to be successful,” he noted. “And I believe we need many of them to be successful as well.”
So as Kline looks to 2025 and beyond, he said the company will try offering "dozens of products" through many channels to many market segments, because at each of those intersections is a business, he said for example, that the company offers auto loans to millennials via a mobile app.
“There are multiple fintechs trying to compete with us in each of those ‘businesses.’ We are not large enough to have teams focused on each of those businesses, so collaborating with fintechs is a way for us to outsource some of that focus,” he shared. “As an industry we need to become much more efficient. As we have grown five times over the past 20 years, we are not measurably more efficient than we were back then. If we are going to improve, we need to change in the way we budget and set performance expectations.”
Wishing for Credit Unions to Recognize the Importance of Data Before Applying AI
As Brynn Ammon, president of Credit Union Solutions at Jack Henry, was deciphering her wish list, she determined that while artificial intelligence (AI) is an undeniably powerful resource, she wants credit unions to recognize the importance of data and how to effectively use it before applying AI and other open-banking capabilities.
“Too often, credit unions are drawn to buzzwords like AI and open banking and rush to adopt them. However, without an intentional strategy, success becomes increasingly difficult. For example, open banking relies on a strong data foundation to enable safe and secure data exchange – without it, the effort falls flat,” she told Finopotamus. “The same applies to AI – without data, it has no value. Credit unions need to prioritize building their data capabilities first.”
The Monett, Mo.-based Jack Henry provides technology solutions to enable clients to innovate faster, strategically differentiate, and successfully compete, while serving the evolving needs of their accountholders.
“The likelihood of this wish being implemented depends on how much emphasis the credit union places on data. Every credit union has data, but that doesn’t necessarily mean they have a strategy to manage it,” Ammon shared. “It’s easy for credit unions to overlook their underlying data issues and chase after the latest technologies like AI and open banking.”
The “real challenge” to this wish, she noted, stems from a lack of education and misinformation about how to use these technologies successfully. “AI and open banking won’t solve the problems your credit union is facing if you don’t have a strong grasp of your data.”
For 2025, Ammon hopes all credit unions prioritize respective data strategies, with a focus on understanding and using data effectively, while also establishing clear policies and procedures to govern its use, she said.
“This is especially important as new regulations, like those related to open banking, continue to emerge. By preparing now, credit unions can be ready to comply if open banking becomes mandatory for their institution,” Ammon continued. “With a solid data strategy in place, they’ll be positioned to explore technologies like AI, defining clear policies and boundaries to ensure it is used responsibly and is beneficial to their institution.”
Wishing That Credit Unions Prioritize Finding the ‘Right’ Consultative Partners
Member Driven Technologies (MDT) VP of Project and Consulting Solution Tracie Loudermilk told Finopotamus that the financial services landscape is increasingly complex and competitive, which informed her wish.
“This results in credit unions facing challenges due to limitations around time, resources and specialized expertise necessary to keep pace with rapid changes, including around technology and digital transformation,” she said. “My top IT wish for 2025 isn’t necessarily for a specific type of technology or solution, but instead that credit unions prioritize finding the right consultative partners to help them evaluate and implement the technology that’s most directly impactful to their institution’s unique differentiator.”
The Farmington Hills. Mich.-based IT services and consulting firm’s 160 employees, 30-plus of which are tech-facing, serve more than 100 credit union clients.
“With the right consultive partner, a credit union can analyze and document the current processes in place and then map out and redesign them to make operations more efficient, streamlined and better aligned with organizational goals,” she shared. “By finding the right expertise and support, credit unions can dedicate their attention to the core mission of optimizing member service while staying competitive and forward looking.”
Noting an “uptick” in demand for consulting services, such as digital transformation, project management, fintech vendor selection, robotic process automation (RPA), payments, efficiencies and security, Loudermilk believe her wish will come true.
As she looks to 2025, she hopes credit union remains true to their DNA, which, she noted, is based on exceptional member service. “To do so in the modern landscape, it will be more important than ever to rely on trusted partners to lend expertise and support when needed, helping them to navigate the complex landscape.”
Wishing for FIs to Become More Efficient With AI Agents
“For financial institutions, particularly credit unions, my wish is for them to look for ways to make themselves more efficient. Large financial institutions have been leveraging automation for some time,” Shastic Founder and CEO Joseariel Gomez told Finopotamus. “Community-based financial institutions need to embrace the future and offset costs and redirect attention to the customer/member by employing AI agents trained for banking.”
The San Francisco-based fintech, which has 13 employees and 45 credit union clients, offers solutions designed to democratize AI workflow automation for community-based FIs.
“Today, automating time-intensive tasks like loan processing and document validation, frees up teams to focus on meaningful member engagement and higher-value initiatives,” Gomez added. “This shift not only reduces costs but also speeds up service delivery, empowering credit unions to remain flexible and competitive with industry disruptions.”
When Finopotamus asked Gomez about the likelihood of his wish coming true, he was optimistic, as many credit unions are already taking steps toward automation. He also conceded to three adoption challenges: stakeholder buy-in, integration concerns and budgeting. “The key to breaking through these barriers lies in education, transparency, and real-world examples of success that showcase the tangible benefits of AI agents.”
Gomez’s hope for the credit union industry in 2025 is in lockstep with his wish, he said.
“That credit unions fully embrace generative-AI to scale operations and compete without compromising their mission of ‘people helping people.’ Through AI agents, credit unions will reduce costs, streamline workflows, and delight members, all while staying true to their community-focused mission,” he continued. “Through collaborative partnership efforts, credit unions and fintechs can create an industry that’s not only efficient, but also innovative and deeply member-focused, ensuring long-term success in 2025 and beyond.”
Wishing for Credit Unions Prioritize Implementing Seamless Account Opening and Loan Origination Solutions
As interest rates fall, Candescent Chief Product Officer Doug Brown said credit unions will need to prioritize “implementing seamless account opening and loan origination solutions” to support growth and what he believes will be an uptick in lending activity.
“It must be easy, quick and convenient to open and onboard accounts and apply for the right types of loans for credit unions to successfully attract and retain members. Such efforts are especially important in the face of seemingly endless online lenders and the rising competition from large national institutions,” he told Finopotamus. “Next year will present a strong opportunity for credit unions to grow and capture member wallet share and loyalty, but they must have the intuitive digital-first experiences and tools in place.”
The Atlanta-based fintech offers technologies that are designed to power and connect account opening, digital banking and branch solutions for banks and credit unions. The company’s 1,600-plus employees serve more than 1,300 banks and credit unions.
Regarding his wish, Brown believes that many credit unions will be successful in this space because they remain focused on member wants and are dedicated to being there for them in their moment of need.
“However, one challenge that some may run into is the lack of connected experiences. Too often, if a member runs into a question during the account onboarding or loan application process, they have to completely start over if they choose to seek help in branch or via other methods such as ITMs,” he continued. “The credit unions that invest in connected, end-to-end experiences – in which the digital and physical channels have the ability to communicate and share data – will be most effective in acting upon the significant opportunity ahead.”
For 2025, Brown’s hope for credit unions is to embrace the noted challenges and continue to evolve.
“Finding ways to connect with and help their members, especially younger generations that often look to financial influencers on TikTok and social media, or other unverified sources,” he offered. “Credit unions should work with their trusted, proven technology partners who can advise on strategy and help identify the right tools and solutions.”