SAN DIMAS, Calif. -
The program, which connects credit unions to Vcom financial self-service kiosks, has been expanded from its original scope and will include another 300 7-Elevens, according to an announcement sent to FSCC's credit union members. Original plans had called for connections to a total of 1,900 7-Elevens.
"One of the reasons it took so long is we wanted to get it right," said Sarah Canepa-Bang, president of the shared branching network, referring to original plans to introduce the connection in June. "The important thing is that the credit union movement made it to this spot first, so we've got a head start."
The 7-Eleven connection will give credit union members surcharge-free access to their funds around the clock at participating credit unions and provide a variety of functions, including cash withdrawal, deposits and bill payment.
The credit union-owned CO-OP Financial Services also has surcharge-free access to 5,500 machines in 7-Elevens, including the 2,000 Vcoms, for ATM functions.
Canepa-Bang was enthusiastic about the network's new access points. "I'm just floored," she said. "We're having transactions from midnight to 8 a.m., at times of the day we normally don't process."
The FSCC connection will be available in 7-Elevens in 19 states, with the most stores located in California, Florida, Virginia, Washington, Maryland, Texas and Colorado.
The 7-Eleven machines are now owned by Cardtronics, which acquired them from the convenience store chain this summer for $135 million. Cardtronics, the nation's largest operator of ATMs, has filed with regulators to go public in an initial public offering. The company has emerged as one of the leading players in electronic funds transfers for credit unions with a fleet of 30,000 ATMs across the country and touchpoints with credit unions through FSCC, the CO-OP, the Credit Union 24 EFT network, and dozens of individual credit unions through Cardtronics' surcharge-free Allpoint network.
