At the 2026 Governmental Affairs Conference (GAC), host Shirley Senn chats with Matt Sweeney and Chris Slinger of Lockton Insurance to discuss what makes their partnership with credit unions so meaningful. From corporate insurance and bonding to employee benefits, Lockton shares how their work aligns with the credit union philosophy of people helping people—supporting both members and the employees who serve them. 

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 In this episode of the Mission Critical Podcast, recorded live at GAC 2026, JT (BankSocial) and David Dean (EFTG) sit down with Har Rai Khalsa, CEO and co-founder of Swaystack. Har Rai shares the candid story of his first company's acquisition by Alkami — from an unexpected introduction to their founder, to a firm "no" that became a yes, to the lessons a board can teach you about timing and value. 

If you're a founder wondering what an exit really looks like from the inside, this one's for you. 

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 At GAC 2026, host Jonathan Taylor sits down with Alexey, founder of Boucoup — the family banking platform designed to eliminate the fear and stress of money for the next generation.

Alexey shares his raw founder journey: from running a 35-person mobile consulting firm in Silicon Valley to a pivotal moment when a credit union's app cratered to 1-star reviews—and how that crisis became the spark that launched a product company.

He opens up about the gut-wrenching decision to shut down a profitable consulting business, the hard work of shifting his team's mindset, and how replacing corporate buzzwords with a clear human mission—"eradicate the fear and stress of money"—unlocked creativity and momentum across his entire team.

Plus: why Boucoup's family banking product (think parent-to-child loans with real interest, due dates, and late fees) is the feature Alexey is most fired up about right now.

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Recorded live at GAC 2026 at the Museum of Illusions, hosts Jonathan Taylor (BankSocial/CU Spotlight) and David Dean (EFTG) sit down with Craig McLaughlin, founder of Finalytics AI. 

Craig shares the raw, unfiltered truth about entrepreneurship—from being "dragged through glass on your stomach" to mastering the shift from doer to manager to leader. He breaks down how to hire for culture over credentials, inspire a team without micromanaging, and build a self-policing organization grounded in shared values. 

Whether you're one person in a booth or scaling a growing company, Craig's insights will sharpen your leadership and fuel your next move. 

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In this episode of the Mission Critical Podcast, recorded live at GAC 2026 during the CU 2.0 Happy Hour at the Museum of Evolutions, hosts Jonathan Taylor (Bank Social / CU Spotlight) and David Dean (EFTG) sit down with Saeid Kian, founder of Ribbon.

Saeid shares the deeply personal story behind Ribbon's founding—after losing his father to pancreatic cancer, he was shocked by the months-long, bureaucratic nightmare of the inheritance process across financial institutions. That experience became the spark for Ribbon: a mission-driven fintech solution helping credit unions streamline the inheritance and bereavement process for their members.

In this conversation, they dive into:

• The "aha moment" that led Saeid to build Ribbon
• The challenges of building a B2B2C product for credit unions
• Unexpected product pivots (Social Security notifications, loans, and protection products)
• Ribbon's vision to automate America's inheritance process

If your credit union cares about serving members during life's hardest moments — while also protecting deposit retention — then this episode is for you.

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In this episode of the Mission Critical Podcast, hosts Jonathan Taylor and David Dean sit down with PJ (Pankaj Jain), founder of Algebric AI, at GAC 2026. 

PJ shares hard-won lessons on breaking into the credit union industry as an outsider—from his "marinated chicken" philosophy of relationship-building and showing up consistently at conferences to the strategic power of assembling a nine-person C-suite advisory board. 

He reveals how authenticity, trust, and long-term thinking helped Algebric AI earn credibility in a deeply relationship-driven industry—and how those same advisors are on track to become paying clients. A must-listen for any fintech founder looking to build in the credit union space.
 

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 At GAC 2026, hosts Jonathan Taylor (BankSocial) and Shirley Senn (New Orleans Firemen's Federal Credit Union) sit down with Gwyneth Borden, founder and CEO of Remynt — an outsourced digital debt collection solution built around financial wellness and empathy. 

Gwyneth shares the deeply personal story behind founding Remynt, why she chose to focus on small credit unions, and what the data is telling us about rising delinquencies, paycheck-to-paycheck living, and the growing threat of predatory online lending. 

Plus: why credit unions are a safe harbor for immigrant communities, the untold story of ITIN banking, and what every credit union should be doing right now to support members before they fall behind. A must-listen for anyone in the credit union movement.

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Recorded live at Cuba Libre during GAC 2026, this episode of the Bits & Bytes Podcast with co-hosts JT Taylor and Shirley Senn features Brian Hinze, President & CEO of NCU-ISAO, and Steve Coyne, CISO & Co-founder of Pure IT Credit Union Services. Together, they break down the cybersecurity landscape facing credit unions today—from NCUA's 2026 supervisory priorities and hacktivist threats tied to global conflict to the rising danger of deepfakes and AI-driven social engineering. The conversation also tackles the human side of security: why board-level cyber awareness matters, how to build a resilient staff culture through incremental training, and how small-to-mid-size credit unions can fight fraud without driving members away. If you want to stay ahead of what's coming in credit union security, this podcast is the episode for you. 

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CU Spotlight sits down with Nick Olexa of Storyfi — the credit union movement's go-to video and media production company — to unpack why storytelling is no longer optional for credit unions. Nick shares how credit union humility has quietly become a liability, why Gen Z and Gen Alpha demand authenticity over polished marketing, and why micro-influencers at the community level may be the industry's most underutilized growth engine. Plus, get a first look at Storyfi's upcoming crowdfunding media platform, Co-author, designed to help credit unions tackle fraud awareness, financial literacy, and more — one bite-size campaign at a time. If your credit union isn't telling its story, this episode is your wake-up call. 

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 James Higgins, CEO of Skyline Financial FCU, proves that small credit unions don't have a size problem — they have a mindset problem. In this episode of CU Spotlight at GAC 2026, James shares how his 91-year-old, $45M credit union went from losing $412K in his first year to projecting $360K in net income — by asking one simple question: "Why can't we?"

From financing the town's fire engine to providing mortgages for a nonprofit housing aging-out foster youth, to becoming the first credit union to adopt Starlight — a FinTech connecting members to government benefits they didn't know they qualified for — Skyline Financial FCU is redefining what community banking looks like at any asset size.

If you've ever used "we're too small" as an excuse, this episode will challenge everything you think you know about what's possible. 

Shine a light where it matters.