The study was based on a survey of 83 credit unions, most of them over $100 million in assets, in December and January.
BOSTON – After a two-year hiatus, credit unions are planning significant boosts in their spending on Information Technology, with much of the focus switching to so-called Cloud Computing.
A new study release by IT consultants Aite Group shows that 65% of participants have budgeted more money for IT this year, with 35% citing increases of more than 10%.
Mobile banking continues to be the top IT priority, with remote deposit capture and enhancement of member experience, such as use of e-statements or social media, close behind.
But the new buzzword for IT departments is cloud computing, or location-independent computing. Aite found that 41% of credit unions plan to make significant investments in cloud computing this year or next, with cost savings and disaster recovery being the driving motivations. Other purposes for implementing cloud computing are: it enables greater focus on business issue; it enables more effective security monitoring; it helps address more complex auditing requirements; and it enables a credit union to outsource compliance monitoring.
Many credit unions are looking at technology solutions to help them attract a greater membership from younger people, the study found.
Aite said the average age for credit union members is in the mid-40's. Aite also said it previous surveys found that only 4% of Gen Yers would be very likely to consider a credit union the next time they needed a financial product and 18% didn’t even know what a credit union is.
The study was based on a survey of 83 credit unions, most of them over $100 million in assets, in December and January.
