PR - TNB Taking Over Five More Credit Union Card Portfolios

Five more credit unions in five states – from California to Maine – have sold their credit card portfolios to TNB Card Services, TNB announced today. The five organizations are the latest to choose to partner with TNB, bringing broader product offerings, better rates, and other advantages to their members.

Dallas-based TNB’s acquisitions reflect a strong market for portfolio sales, as TNB has acquired more than 45 portfolios in 2007, bringing its total to more than 150 in the five years since it launched its agent issuing program for purchasing portfolios.

The latest TNB purchases include Grafton Suburban Credit Union of Massachusetts, Independent Federal Credit Union of Indiana, Western Cooperative Credit Union of North Dakota, County Schools Federal Credit Union of California, and Eastern Maine Medical Center Federal Credit Union of Maine. This series of purchases moved more than $8.4 million in outstanding balances and nearly 8,800 card accounts under TNB’s ownership.

For Grafton Suburban Credit Union in North Grafton, Massachusetts, the bottom line was the deciding factor in selling its portfolio to TNB Card Services.

“TNB’s was the best offer we received, and we felt it was a fair and rewarding one,” said Robert Leist, chief financial officer of Grafton Suburban CU. “We had been considering this for about three years. Balances were shrinking, and delinquencies were a growing concern.”

The sale, Leist said, should yield a better card program that benefits the credit union’s members and generates more usage and interest. With 12,000 members and assets of $102 million, Grafton Suburban CU is community chartered to serve Worcester County, Massachusetts. The credit union, now more than 40 years old, has three branches.

Giving up its “most profitable product,” Independent Federal Credit Union of Anderson, Indiana, took great care in deciding who would buy its card portfolio.

“We sold for strategic purposes, so we can focus on new products in order to grow,” explained Norman Getts, president and CEO of Independent FCU. “We are moving to serve small business owners and diversify our membership and product mix.”

Independent FCU has 16,000 members and $77 million in assets, and is community chartered to serve all of Madison County, Indiana. Until last year, the 60-year-old, four-branch credit union served automobile worker employee groups.

“We started thinking about selling our portfolio two years ago, because we just weren’t able to dedicate the resources to build the program,” said Melanie Stillwell, president and CEO of Western Cooperative Credit Union in Williston, North Dakota. “We realized that we had to change our program or let someone take control of it and make it into what it should be for our members.”

Serving a large rural area of western North Dakota, Western Cooperative CU has 19,000 members. The nearly 70-year-old credit union has assets of $135 million, and six branches, with a community charter that takes in a 75-mile radius around its main office in Williston, or a 50-mile radius around any branch.

After thinking about selling its card program for several years, County Schools Federal Credit Union of Ventura, California, finally took the plunge with TNB. The credit union ownership behind TNB was a key reason for the decision, explained Robert Emerick, CEO, along with an attractive premium.

“With TNB behind the portfolio, our members will now get better rates and services, plus a rewards program,” Emerick said. “We will also be able to sell the program more effectively with TNB marketing it. The sale of the portfolio also helped ease our liquidity crunch.”

“We wanted to provide a good product to our members, but honestly, we aren’t a big enough credit union to do this on our own,” said Ralph Ferland, president and CEO of Eastern Maine Medical Center Federal Credit Union. “We saw the potential of the program, and wanted to offer rewards, better rates, and a Platinum card, and with TNB, we can do that.”

Eastern Maine Medical Center FCU, which serves employees of Eastern Maine Health Care Systems and its affiliates, is a three-branch, 28-year-old organization with 6,000 members and $34 million in assets.