Southern Chautauqua FCU Enhances Financial Access for ALICE Households with Salus

Data-driven approach will help expand lending to underserved communities with sustainable growth

Charlotte, NC – (Sept. 17, 2025) – Southern Chautauqua Federal Credit Union (SCFCU) has quietly served its low-income membership in Western New York. SCFCU is “Doing Well by Doing Good” in the neighborhood. Salus, a leading fintech creating members for life by powering inclusive solutions, is joining them on their journey to focus on their data to continue serving ALICE (Asset Limited, Income Constrained, Employed) households.

Southern Chautauqua, which has grown from 150 members to become the fourth-largest credit union in Western New York by membership (now over 20,000), has built its success on serving working families in one of New York State’s most economically challenged counties. Under the leadership of CEO John Felton, the credit union has achieved a 16% capital ratio and ROA of more than 2% while maintaining a mission-focused approach to community lending.

“ALICE families are good people that are just trying to make ends meet, good people that want to take their kids on vacation,” Felton said. “We work with our families. We talk to them, we help prioritize what they're looking for, and we try to make the best decisions possible by talking to people.” The collaboration will leverage Salus' advanced data analytics platform, Sentinel, to help Southern Chautauqua identify successful lending patterns and expand access to affordable financial services. The two companies’ missions aligned.

“If Salus enables us to say ‘yes’ to more of our members, while at the same time managing our risk, that's a win-win-win.”

The partnership emerged from a chance meeting at a conference where Salus Founder and CEO James Chemplavil heard Felton presenting about Southern Chautauqua's innovative approach to serving ALICE communities. Felton was impressed that Chemplavil stayed for

the entire presentation, eagerly listening and learning about SCFCU’s success. The ensuing conversation about the credit union's work turned into a partnership.

“We believe in the face-to-face,” Felton explained. “Vendors don't have to stay in the room during presentations, right? James did. James came over and started asking questions. He was genuine. He was interested because he wanted to help. I recognized James as a genuine person, I thought, ‘This is my kind of guy!’”

Chemplavil returned the compliment. "John and his team at Southern Chautauqua have built something truly remarkable: a sustainable business model that serves their community's most vulnerable members while generating strong returns. Our platform will help them scale their impact by identifying the characteristics that predict success, allowing them to serve more people in need while maintaining their impressive performance metrics. This is exactly the kind of mission-driven partnership that demonstrates how technology can amplify human-centered financial services."

About Salus

Salus is the leading fintech provider helping credit unions meet members where they are and make them members for life. The founders leverage their decades of experience in credit and technology to continue developing new services to help credit unions drive financial inclusion. The firm offers microloans, credit risk analytics through its Sentinel service, Earned Wage Access and loan automation. To learn more, visit www.SalusFintech.com or schedule a meeting with the team here.