PORTLAND, Ore. - The $1-billion Northwest Corporate Credit Union is reporting that after implementing VSoft Corp.'s Branch Item Capture it has achieved significant cost savings by eliminating transportation and equipment costs. The corporate said it spent nearly a year determining the best solution for its credit union members before deciding to implement VSoft's Branch Item Capture. VSoft currently has installations with 14 corporate credit unions and leagues, reaching more than 6,000 credit unions.

BOISE, Idaho - Text-message banking will win the hearts of local teenagers, according to two small credit unions that launched the service this summer.

MOLINE, Ill. - More than one year into enterprise instant messaging (IM), Mary Slonecker, PC specialist at $550-million IH Mississippi Valley CU here, provided Credit Union Journal with her "Top Three Tips" for implementing the tool:

Why did you join a shared branch network, have there been benefits, can you measure ROI, and are members using it?

NEEDHAM, Mass. - Is your credit union planning to implement technology solutions such as enterprise business rules management systems or specialized applications with embedded business rules engines?

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

SAN ANTONIO - San Antonio City Employees FCU plan to open a branch inside a Goodwill Industries store here. The branch follows renovations to the expanded facility, which also includes a Job Help Center. According to Goodwill, the credit union will provide short-term borrowing solutions, payroll check-cashing, financial literacy counseling, and other services. The 18,000-square-foot facility is one of the largest Goodwill stores in the country, and it sells more than 20,000 pieces of clothing weekly from the 14 to 21 truckloads of items it receives each week.

FAIRBORN, Ohio — Wright-Patt Credit Union and CMG Mortgage Insurance Co. have formed a partnership to create another method for veterans to achieve the American Dream.

DURHAM, N.C. - Latino Community Credit Union is believed to have become the first credit union to produce its own feature film.

The website Consumerist.com included a thread from a consumer explaining they had left a cellphone at her credit union, and when they returned it was missing. The member then asked her CU to review the security videos to see who took the phone, but the CU declined, saying it would not do so without a subpoena. Below the thread other consumers then reacted to the entry, with most noting there were good reasons not to allow someone to watch security videos.

NEWARK, N.J. - Jonathan Kaufman is quite sure that Newark Board of Education Employees Credit Union, of which he's CEO, does a good job serving its members, all of whom work for the Newark, N.J. school system.

VIENNA, Va. - Mobile banking has much to prove before claiming the same success that homebanking has earned over the past decade, according to several of the nation's credit unions, large and small, that are holding off on offering the service.

CAMBRIDGE, Mass. - Contactless payments are "fun" for members at Harvard University Employees CU (HUECU) here, and something that the credit union believes sets it apart.

HOUSTON - Cardtronics, one of the main EFT gateways for credit unions, said it plans to raise as much as $115 million through an IPO. The operator of 30,000 ATMs said it will use most of the proceeds from the offering, $106 million worth, to repay debt from its revolving credit facility. The company expects to offer as many as 8.3-million shares for between $14 and $16 each. As part of the IPO, the company's two major shareholders also plan to sell an undetermined number of shares. That includes venture funds CapStreet LLP of Houston, which owns about 34% of the company, and TA Associates of Boston, which owns almost 30%. Cardtronics provides electronic funds transfer services to a majority of CUs, either through CO-OP Financial Services, Financial Services Centers Cooperative, or Credit Union 24, which all connect to members through Cardtronics machines, or through Allpoint National, a wholly owned subsidiary of Cardtronics. (c) 2007 The Credit Union Journal and SourceMedia, Inc. All Rights Reserved. http://www.cujournal.com http://www.sourcemedia.com

At press time, the number of co-sponsors on the CURIA bill. 217 are needed to have a majority. (c) 2007 The Credit Union Journal and SourceMedia, Inc. All Rights Reserved. http://www.cujournal.com http://www.sourcemedia.com

HOUSTON - Instant messaging (IM) is steadily overtaking e-mail as the primary means of communication between employees, according to some credit unions.

Merger Leads To Special Dividend

In the July 15 issue, CU Journal explored the advantages larger CUs have over their smaller brethren. In this series, the Journal focuses on thriving, small CUs.

Credit Union Journal Subscribers can access all content from the print edition every Monday simultaneously with its publication at www.cujournal.com. Additional resources include:

MADISON, Wis. - The Filene Research Institute's Young Adult Project has a new leader.