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The nation's first and so far only "virtual" credit union has joined two surcharge-free ATM networks to serve its nationwide membership of real-estate professionals. Realtors Federal Credit Union, which opened May 1, has no branches or ATMs of its own. To assist members in withdrawing funds and depositing sales-commission checks and cash, the credit union joined the Credit Union 24's and Co-op Financial Services' surcharge-free ATM networks, giving its members free access to 83,000 ATMs nationwide. Co-op offers a network of 9,000 deposit-taking Vcoms, or multifunctional ATMs, which Cardtronics Inc. deploys in 2,200 7-Eleven convenience stores nationwide. The Vcoms accept envelope-free deposits, says Joel Antonini, spokesperson for the Houston-based ATM independent sales organization. Credit Union 24 offers 1,541 deposit-accepting ATMs through participating credit-union branches.
