Is your credit union good at telling the 'credit union' story? Have you found a unique and effective way to communicate to members and prospective members just what it is you are and why you're different? Then take a moment and enter the Frankie Awards. Just e-mail fdiekmann cujournal.com and share what you've done and how it's worked, along with any related materials. For a look at what previous Frankie winners have done, go to www.cujournal.com and search "Frankie" in the search box. Deadline is Nov. 23. (c) 2007 The Credit Union Journal and SourceMedia, Inc. All Rights Reserved. http://www.cujournal.com http://www.sourcemedia.com

In the Nov. 5 edition of CU Journal, the last line of an article about Ascend FCU's Best Practices Award for Branch Design was cut off. The last full sentence should have read: "In addition, the number of services cross-sold into these households has increased at an annualized rate of 21.5%." (c) 2007 The Credit Union Journal and SourceMedia, Inc. All Rights Reserved. http://www.cujournal.com http://www.sourcemedia.com

KEY BISCAYNE, Fla. - CUNA Mutual's trading desk has been a real success in terms of funds invested, seeing almost $100 million a month deposited into its various portfolios-but it has yet to catch on where it counts: with credit unions.

HIGHTSTOWN, N.J. - After a series of CEO replacements, the New Jersey Credit Union League has tapped Paul Gentile to take the reins.

SANTA ANA, Calif. - After 13 years of creating daily rate sheets the hard way, often to find them peppered with errors, Orange County's Credit Union here landed on a tool that automatically-and accurately-generates them.

ALEXANDRIA, Va. - A new contract with NCUA's fledgling examiners union will add more than $2 million to the agency's budget next year and push up pay for all NCUA employees by an average of 5%.

ARVADA, Colo. - Texas-based Security Service FCU has become a full dues-paying member of the Colorado Credit Union Association. In 2006, the CCUA moved to allow full membership to out-of-state credit unions with a brick and mortar presence in the state. Security Service, which is based in San Antonio, has been in Colorado for 27 years with offices in Colorado Springs, Pueblo and Denver, and is the third largest credit union in Colorado.

AT&T Launches Mobile Banking

LAS VEGAS - Members are still falling for the same old phishing tricks, some five years into grand-scale phishing and despite continued attempts to warn members against such ploys, according to some credit unions.

LAS VEGAS - Is the hype of the early part of this decade finally coming to fruition in mobile payments?

International Shared Branch Open

KING OF PRUSSIA, Penn. - AFTECH announced that it will continue its 20-year processing partnership with Sun East FCU in Aston, Pa, a $316-million CU.Sun East has authorized a new agreement with AFTECH for core processing and other products and services that brings Sun East the opportunity to offer its more than 40,000 members a range of new services.

Natco Teams With Sedona

ARCATA, Calif. - What looked like a set of overblown accounting tools a year ago has propelled the $15-million Northern Redwood FCU here toward "sophisticated" financial analysis worthy of any billion-dollar CU, according to CEO Greg Goodwyn.

WEST PALM BEACH, Fla. -

DANVILLE, Va. - Credit unions' blogs have turned into "blobbies."

The following are members of Credit Union Journal's Technology Panel.

HARRISBURG, Penn. - Machiavelli believed it's better to be feared than loved, but Pennsylvania State Employees CU knows that if you push the fear button too often, it starts to lose its impact.

With competition for prime branch sites more intense than ever, credit unions and banks are moving quickly to secure their next locations. Perhaps too quickly. In the rush to outrace competitors into the next hot market, financials sometimes neglect to include some basic provisions into their sale or lease agreements that could save the institution considerable angst in the future.

Credit unions offer a unique focus on the needs of local communities, employee groups, and affinity groups. In an age of increasingly sophisticated financial services options and high levels of personalized member interaction, credit unions seek to maintain a special quality relationship with its members. Credit unions lend a personal touch to providing new products and financing options to its membership.