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Modernizing the Credit Union Experience Without Losing Trust
What does it really take to modernize digital banking inside a credit union? In this episode, host Logan Lyles sits down with Eddie Sorrell (CIO, UK Credit Union), Justin Billig (CEO & Co-Founder, Tensure), and Joe Kerstanoff (Director of Platform Engineering, Tensure) to unpack how UK Credit Union transformed its online account opening experience — cutting abandonment rates from over 40% to under 15%, dropping manual application reviews from 80%+ to under 10%, and turning their digital banking app into their biggest "branch," with members logging in an average of 27+ times a month.
The conversation covers:
- Why digital banking has become the largest "branch" for credit unions — and what that means for member experience
- How removing friction (like driver's license requirements) transformed account opening conversion
- The case for shipping an MVP fast and iterating based on real user feedback
- Why the hardest part of modernization is people and mindset, not technology
- Balancing fraud prevention with a seamless member experience
- Platform engineering principles — treating your internal platform as a product
- Driving member engagement and activation after account opening
- Practical advice for credit union and community bank leaders starting their own modernization journey
Whether you're a technology leader at a credit union, community bank, or fintech, this episode offers a real-world playbook for modernizing legacy systems without losing the trust that makes community financial institutions special.
Connect with Eddie Sorrell on LinkedIn or learn more at ukcreditunion.org. Connect with Justin Billig and Joe Kerstanoff to learn more about Tensure's platform engineering work with financial institutions.
If you found this valuable, subscribe or follow for future episodes.
00:00 Meet Eddie Sorrell
02:17 Digital Banking As Your Biggest Branch
03:54 Why Modernization Matters
08:13 Fixing Account Opening
17:11 MVPs, Integrations & Legacy Systems
26:39 Brokering Partnerships
27:11 Art of Possible Mindset
31:07 Modernization as Change
36:43 Friction Versus Fraud
39:59 Key Takeaways
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By TensureWhat does it really take to modernize digital banking inside a credit union? In this episode, host Logan Lyles sits down with Eddie Sorrell (CIO, UK Credit Union), Justin Billig (CEO & Co-Founder, Tensure), and Joe Kerstanoff (Director of Platform Engineering, Tensure) to unpack how UK Credit Union transformed its online account opening experience — cutting abandonment rates from over 40% to under 15%, dropping manual application reviews from 80%+ to under 10%, and turning their digital banking app into their biggest "branch," with members logging in an average of 27+ times a month.
The conversation covers:
- Why digital banking has become the largest "branch" for credit unions — and what that means for member experience
- How removing friction (like driver's license requirements) transformed account opening conversion
- The case for shipping an MVP fast and iterating based on real user feedback
- Why the hardest part of modernization is people and mindset, not technology
- Balancing fraud prevention with a seamless member experience
- Platform engineering principles — treating your internal platform as a product
- Driving member engagement and activation after account opening
- Practical advice for credit union and community bank leaders starting their own modernization journey
Whether you're a technology leader at a credit union, community bank, or fintech, this episode offers a real-world playbook for modernizing legacy systems without losing the trust that makes community financial institutions special.
Connect with Eddie Sorrell on LinkedIn or learn more at ukcreditunion.org. Connect with Justin Billig and Joe Kerstanoff to learn more about Tensure's platform engineering work with financial institutions.
If you found this valuable, subscribe or follow for future episodes.
00:00 Meet Eddie Sorrell
02:17 Digital Banking As Your Biggest Branch
03:54 Why Modernization Matters
08:13 Fixing Account Opening
17:11 MVPs, Integrations & Legacy Systems
26:39 Brokering Partnerships
27:11 Art of Possible Mindset
31:07 Modernization as Change
36:43 Friction Versus Fraud
39:59 Key Takeaways