Let’s face it—if you’re about to join a credit union, and they bring out a stack of paperwork, it’s game over. You’ll walk out and find someplace that isn’t stuck in 1995.
And if you nodded in recognition as you read that, imagine how Millennials, Gen Z, and Gen Alpha feel when their online account application drags on nearly 30 minutes.
It’s critical to foster engagement from day one. The best way to do that is with a streamlined, user-friendly account opening process and onboarding strategy.
This 2.0 Guide is intended to introduce fintechs that provide online account opening services, onboarding services, and a combination thereof.
In this guide, we will focus specifically on newer providers that offer significant user experience (UX) improvements over legacy providers; our reasons for this are:
- Newer providers are shown to be much more effective at achieving account opening (AO) KPIs, and
- We cannot overstate the value of a good new member experience (although we’ll try to in the following pages).
For the purposes of this guide, we’re grouping account opening and onboarding providers together—even though they’re two separate segments of the new member experience. Our Fintech Ratings section will show whether a provider offers account opening, onboarding, or both.
Account Opening and Onboarding Trends and Statistics
1. Nearly 50% of new credit union accounts churn or go dormant in the first year. We first discovered this nearly 10 years ago. It bears repeating now because a recent study found that this is still a problem.
So, why hasn’t anything changed? Because nothing has changed!
Most credit unions still offer minimal onboarding support. Without a dedicated process, solution, or manpower, new members are lucky to get so much as a single email, let alone:
- A multi-part email sequence to welcome the member and introduce opportunities
- A welcome packet via direct mail
- A phone call from a member service representative
- Text messages
- Push notifications
- In-app or online onboarding support
Best practices for engagement—which result in higher observed cross-sell and better brand loyalty—call for at least seven engagement touchpoints in the first month of membership.
2. Direct deposit is important. Funding a new account is the critical first step to making that account matter. Continued funding seals it.
Members with direct deposit have, on average:
- Higher average account balances;
- Longer membership tenures; and
- Improved member satisfaction and loyalty.
Providing direct deposit switch (DDS) capabilities and account funding options at the time of account opening is critical to long-term success.
3. Less than two minutes. That’s how much time it takes to open an account with the new breed of account opening fintechs.
That’s just enough time to follow a simple set of instructions, but not so much time that the user starts questioning whether they really need the account…
That’s a real phenomenon, too. Legacy AO providers need 20–30 minutes to get a new member set up. Only 10–15% of users complete their application. Cut the application time to 2 minutes however, and conversion rates spike to 85–90%.
4. Maybe cores can do it… but should they? Most major cores include an online account opening solution. But if you’re reading this guide, then you’re aware of the shortcomings.
First, a core’s AO solution is geared specifically for use with that core. If you’re not on that core, then tough luck.
Second, core AO solutions—to our knowledge—can’t do what dedicated solutions can do today. That is, open new accounts in less than 2 minutes, all while handling funding, cross-sell, and even onboarding.
Because of this—and assuming you’re searching for something above and beyond what your core provides—we’re not listing core solutions in our fintech ratings section.
Evaluation Strategies
Not all account opening and onboarding fintechs offer the same set of benefits. In fact, in our research, we’ve discovered that all solutions are unique in function and features, even if their end results are similar.
Consequently, there are several things to consider when evaluating online account opening and onboarding fintechs:
Account opening
Does the solution allow members to open a new account? Or is it an onboarding-only solution?
Onboarding
After the member creates their new account, does the solution assist with or take over onboarding? Can onboarding be automated? Will your credit union need its own onboarding solution or manual?
User experience
How intuitive and easy to use is the solution? How much information will a prospective member need on hand to complete their session?
Cross-sell
Does the solution have a decision engine or another means of delivering cross-sell offers? Are the offers presented during account creation or throughout the onboarding process?
Account funding and direct deposit switch
Does the solution allow new members to quickly fund their account? Does it include DDS capabilities? Can it switch automatic payments from an existing account to their new one?
Lending
Can the fintech turn loan applicants into members? Can new members apply for loans through the fintech?
Account types
Is the solution geared towards personal accounts? Can it accept new business accounts?
Integration and compatibility
Does the solution require core or digital banking integration? Will other systems have easy access to the solution’s data?
KYC/AML and fraud prevention
How does the solution verify identity? Does the solution have inbuilt KYC/AML and fraud prevention capabilities?
Support and training
How much training will the product/service require? Will the vendor provide ongoing support?
Employee experience
Does the product automate any employee tasks? Will it make anyone’s job easier? Or will it add complexity to someone’s workflow or duties?
Flexibility and scalability
Can the solution grow with the credit union? Are there any modular elements that credit unions can customize for their own strategic goals, or is it plug-and-play?
Fintech Categorizations
Usually, our fintech categorizations section estimates which fintechs want to Steal Your Lunch, which want to Sell You Lunch, and which want to Eat Lunch with You.
However, none of the fintechs here are looking to steal your market share. None of these fintechs are out to steal your lunch.
Yet we can still categorize these fintechs between legacy and next-gen providers. Legacy providers may fit better with your tech stack, meet more robust compliance standards, or boast a longer track record. Next-gen providers open and fund accounts faster, feature better onboarding or cross-sell, and prioritize the digital relationship.
Please note that we are not including core solutions in the ratings section of this guide. Additionally, you can view our categorizations in the downloadable version of this guide (forthcoming).
Fintech Ratings
Rating Methodology
CU 2.0’s rating methodology attempts to score fintechs based on the 4 most important factors for credit unions:
- Income statement: (1) Non-interest income and/or deposits, (2) interest income, (3) both
- Balance sheet: (1) Deposits, (2) loans, (3) both
- Member impact: By members affected: (1) 1–33%, (2) 33 – 66%, (3) 66–100% and/or memberization
- Employee impact: (1) Improves workflows, (2) automates some, (3) automates a lot
We score each category above on a scale of 1 to 3 according to the scale above, with scores of 0 indicating that the solution has no known impact. Additionally, in some guides, providers will have very similar scores.
Our ratings don’t necessarily correlate to quality, nor do they suggest which solution is best for you.
Fintechs with higher scores aren’t automatically better, or a better fit, for your credit union and members. Additionally, please note that these ratings are estimations based on our understanding of the product or service.
Please note that we are not including core solutions in the ratings section of this guide.
Trusted solutions are highlighted with an asterisk—these are providers that CU 2.0 has vetted or worked with personally.
| Fintech | Description | Income Statement | Balance Sheet | Member Impact | Employee Impact | Primary solution |
| Alkami (MANTL) | MANTL is a digital account opening platform that helps credit unions grow deposits with streamlined onboarding, automation, fraud prevention, and seamless integration for both consumer and business accounts. | 3 | 3 | 3 | 3 | Account opening |
| Cotribute | Cotribute offers a digital onboarding platform for credit unions, enabling fast, automated account and loan applications with integrated fraud protection, marketing automation, and seamless core banking integration. | 3 | 3 | 3 | 3 | Account opening |
| CreditSnap | CreditSnap provides an omnichannel account opening and lending platform for credit unions, offering instant ID verification, fraud detection, eSignatures, and seamless core integration to enhance the onboarding experience. | 3 | 3 | 3 | 3 | Account opening |
| Digital Onboarding | Digital Onboarding provides a digital engagement platform that helps credit unions activate new accounts, drive product adoption, and improve member retention through automated messaging, personalized onboarding, and cross-selling strategies. | 0 | 0 | 3 | 3 | Onboarding |
| fiVISION | fiVISION offers a digital account opening platform for credit unions, featuring automation, fraud detection, and seamless integrations to streamline onboarding and enhance the member experience. | 1 | 1 | 3 | 2 | Account opening |
| Glide* Learn more | Glide is an AI-powered digital account opening and loan origination platform that turns applicants into fully funded members in under two minutes, streamlining onboarding with automation, fraud detection, and seamless integration. | 3 | 3 | 3 | 3 | Account opening |
| MeridianLink | MeridianLink provides a digital account opening solution that streamlines onboarding with automation, ID verification, and seamless integration, enabling credit unions to onboard new members quickly and efficiently. | 3 | 3 | 3 | 2 | Account opening |
| Narmi Grow | Narmi Grow is a digital account opening solution that accelerates deposit and membership growth with a seamless, omnichannel experience, high completion rates, flexible funding options, and deep core integrations. | 1 | 1 | 3 | 2 | Account opening |
| Origence | Origence offers a digital account opening solution that streamlines the member onboarding experience with seamless integration, ID verification, and automation to enhance efficiency and compliance. | 3 | 3 | 3 | 3 | Account opening |
| Q2 Gro | Q2 Gro provides a digital account opening solution that streamlines onboarding with automation, fraud prevention, and seamless integration, helping credit unions improve efficiency and grow deposits. | 1 | 1 | 3 | 2 | Account opening |
| Swaystack* Learn more | Swaystack gamifies onboarding, ensuring new members don’t disappear within the first year. It drives engagement with automated campaigns, personalized onboarding kits, and direct deposit switching, helping credit unions increase activation, deposits, and long-term member retention. | 0 | 0 | 3 | 3 | Onboarding |
| WithClutch | WithClutch provides a digital account opening and loan onboarding platform that automates approvals, enhances cross-selling, and accelerates funding to help credit unions grow deposits and improve the member experience. | 3 | 3 | 3 | 3 | Account opening |
Please note that these ratings will be updated regularly and as needed. These ratings are not definite—you may find that a provider impacts your credit union differently than our estimation suggests.
Did we miss a fintech? Please let us know at info@cu-2.com
Recommendations
Choosing the right fintech partners is never as easy of a decision as we’d like. There are no one-size-fits-all solutions.
At CU 2.0, we discover, research, and work with fintechs all day, every day. Often, we’ll have unique insights about a company’s product, team, or operations that won’t show up on a sales sheet.
For a pure onboarding solution, we prefer Swaystack. Despite being the newer solution, it’s more robust and feature-rich, and our experience in working with both Swaystack and Digital Onboarding left us feeling more confident about Swaystack’s direction.
For an account opening solution, the leader is less clear cut. This is especially true as legacy providers step up their game and core providers may offer a seamless solution with their other suite of products. However, for a standalone solution, we recommend including Glide in your shortlist. It’s extremely fast and easy to use, and it includes surprisingly robust onboarding support as well.
So, although we can’t give blanket recommendations through a downloadable guide, we can do something even better. Book a 30-minute consultation with us at no cost here:
