TNB Acquires Card Portfolios From Credit Unions in Three States

Credit unions in three states have sold their credit card portfolios to TNB Card Services, TNB announced today, and the sales have pushed its total number of portfolios owned to 130.

TNB has acquired 30 portfolios in 2007 alone. TNB Card Services has provided full-service payment processing to credit unions for over thirty years and began its agent issuing program for purchasing portfolios in late 2002. It offers card issuing and processing to credit unions looking for a credit union-owned partner.

The latest TNB purchases include Baker Federal Credit Union, of New Jersey; Citizens Credit Union and Good Shepherd Credit Union, both of Michigan; and First Trust Credit Union of Indiana. This series of purchases moved more than $8.8 million in outstanding balances and 6,400 card accounts under TNB’s ownership.

Baker Federal Credit Union, headquartered in Phillipsburg, New Jersey, is community chartered for Warren County. The 46-year-old credit union has 3,200 members and $30 million in assets, and had been thinking about selling its card program since 2006.

“The program just wasn’t sufficiently profitable for us,” said Susan Rodriguez, CEO of Baker FCU. She added that the credit union favored TNB for several reasons. Among them were the wider product selection and higher credit limits that TNB would be able to offer cardholders, and the quality of service that TNB provided.

“The level of service that TNB gave us both before and after the sale has been excellent,” Rodriguez noted.

Citizens Credit Union of Kalamazoo, Michigan, is a community chartered credit union covering Kalamazoo, Van Buren, and Allegan counties in western Michigan. The four-branch, 52-year-old credit union, formerly known as Kalamazoo Governmental Employees FCU, has 8,800 members and assets of $61.7 million.

“We were seeking to reduce or eliminate liability from potential fraud losses and to provide more options, such as Platinum cards, for our members,” explained Ron Bigelow, CEO of Citizens CU.

After considering a portfolio sale for about six months, Citizens was connected to TNB Card Services through a third party consultant. Bigelow said TNB’s “credit union connections at the ownership and board level” definitely helped the company stand out as Citizens weighed its options.

Good Shepherd Credit Union of Lincoln Park, Michigan, is a community chartered institution serving 15 Downriver suburbs of Detroit. Marking a half century of service this year, the two-branch credit union has 9,900 members and assets of $75 million.

“We were looking at very little growth in our credit card portfolio, but the associated expenses kept increasing,” said Lisa Cook, president and CEO of Good Shepherd CU, who noted that the credit union had been considering a portfolio sale for about a year.

“We didn’t want to sell to a bank, and we liked TNB’s credit union connections. Also, they offered a better program,” Cook said, explaining why Good Shepherd CU picked TNB as its buyer from among the bidders.

First Trust Credit Union of La Porte, Indiana, is an education-focused credit union that extends membership to schools, universities, and hospitals in a seven-county area of northern Indiana. The 48-year-old credit union, once known as La Porte School Teachers Credit Union, has five branches serving 12,000 members. It has $58 million in assets.

“We wanted to extend our product options for our members and offer a rewards program,” said Ron Budzinski, president and CEO of First Trust CU, adding that the credit union had been considering a portfolio sale for 18 months.

TNB’s flexibility in structuring a contract for the sale, coupled with its credit union ownership, helped it stand out against one other bidder for the First Trust CU card program, Budzinski said.