CHARLESTON, W.V.-A small credit union here became the first financial institution in the country to create an iPhone remote deposit application.

ARLINGTON, Va.-As banks come under fire for a disappointing performance on loan modifications this year, credit unions appear to be doing a much better job.

LOMBARD, Ill.-As credit unions like SECU partner with members to develop strategies to avoid foreclosure, there is a segment of the population that simply does not want to work with the financial institution, warns Bill Handel, VP of research and development at Raddon Financial Group.

LOMBARD, Ill.-Credit unions in 2009 increased their credit card balances, but owe the gain as much to banks' tough card policies as much as aggressive CU marketing.

MADISON, Wis.-The Credit Union Executives Society introduced a new conference pricing policy during 2009, offering its members the opportunity to "Pay What You Can" for two meetings.

JOHNSTOWN, Penn.-Three board members at USSCO Johnstown FCU here got another chance to save their seats, and they took full advantage by winning a re-vote after the first election was thrown out.

WASHINGTON-After completing its work in September, the joint CUNA/NAFCU Corporate Credit Union Task Force is likely dissolved for good.

SOUTHFIELD, Mich.-CUcorp's Invest in America has expanded beyond car discounts to include special savings from Thor Industries (a manufacturer of recreational vehicles), Allied Moving and Storage, and FTD. The program will continue to branch out, according to Dave Adams, but car discounts will always remain the focus.

Southeast Corporate Reduces Its Workforce

PSCU-FS Leases Data Center ST. PETERSBURG, Fla.-PSCU Financial Services signed a five-year agreement to lease some of its Phoenix data center space to Ongoing Operations, LLC, to support growth from credit unions that are purchasing its disaster recovery/business continuity services. The Phoenix data center will be Ongoing Operations' fourth location-the company also has data centers in Maryland, Oregon and Colorado.

DAVENPORT, Iowa-A $93-million CU has already seen unexpected results in the three months it has offered its "triple play" mobile banking service that allows members to use SMS, a mobile browser or a download to access mobile banking.

BOSTON-With banks primarily focused on merchant capture, one company said credit unions are moving quickly to step into a vacuum and leverage opportunities in consumer capture.

BOSTON-There's a (compliance) app for that. Apple Computer's iPhone App Store model is increasingly becoming the model for delivery of services in the commercial market, including to credit unions.

MADISON, Wis.-CUNA Mutual Group officials expressed regret at this week's setback in the BJ Wholesale Club Breach but said they hope the case helps bring awareness to shortcomings in the system for compensating credit unions and other financial institution victims of card frauds.

MADISON, Wis.-Calling it a "hopeful sign" for the economy, analysis released by CUNA shows that credit unions' savings growth increased to 10.2% during the third quarter.

OLYMPIA, Wash.-Washington State Employees CU, the state's second largest credit union, celebrated a grand opening for its new headquarters here, a five-story, 130,000 square-foot building on the downtown's Union Avenue.

DUBUQUE, Iowa-At first glance it would seem the 3.9% introductory rate on its money market account would be all that was needed to help Dupaco Community Credit Union attract $200 million in deposits over the last year.

With just a wee bit of sass we mark another year passed, where has gone the time?

Thanks to the CARD Act, credit unions have brought their credit card portfolios into the forefront of their strategic priorities. This is a good thing for credit unions and their members.

You know how much your credit union has to offer. The challenge is how to educate your members and prospective members that a credit union is much more than a place to keep a savings account and get an auto loan.