2000 Press Releases
CUNA Mutual Group And MEMBERS Development Company Partner With FOLIOfn To Offer Innovative Investing Service To Credit Unions
12/20/2000
MADISON, Wisconsin – CUNA Mutual Group, working with MEMBERS Development Company, LLC, announced an exclusive partnership to offer FOLIOfn’s innovative new product, FOLIO Investing℠, to credit unions and their members throughout the country.
MEMBERS FOLIO Investing, as this service will be branded in credit unions, will include FOLIO Investing, the innovative brokerage service invented by FOLIOfn, as well as the traditional discount brokerage service already available as part of FOLIO Investing, and a new, easy and affordable dollar-based stock investing system for novice investors or those who simply wish to make small investments in individual stocks.
“MEMBERS Development Company and CUNA Mutual work together to offer high-value solutions and maximum convenience to the nation’s credit unions and their tens of millions of members,” said John Henry, CEO of MEMBERS Development Company, and vice president of sales and marketing for CUNA Mutual. “Through the products we develop, we help credit unions offer their members a better deal in financial services. MEMBERS FOLIO Investing is a great product for credit unions because it represents a good deal and a sound way to invest.”
“Our partnership with FOLIOfn advances CUNA Mutual’s efforts to help credit unions provide attractive investment solutions to their various member segments,” said Kevin Lentz, vice president of Member Services at CUNA Mutual. “The FOLIO Investing concept provides a strong value proposition for credit union members whether they want to invest in personalized stock portfolios or simply use the FOLIOfn system for affordable stock investing.”
“It fits nicely with CUNA Mutual’s MEMBERS Brokerage Account, which is aimed at member segments seeking the flexibility to manage their brokerage account through multiple channels—enabling on-line, call center and representative access in a single account.”
CUNA Mutual and MEMBERS Development Company plan to offer MEMBERS FOLIO Investing through approximately 200 credit unions within six months and more than 500 credit unions within two years. CUNA Mutual provides financial and insurance products and services to some 95 percent of the 10,700 credit unions in the United States. More than 5,000 credit unions already have at least one MEMBERS Financial Services relationship with CUNA Mutual.
“Millions of credit union members will soon have access to MEMBERS FOLIO Investing,” said FOLIOfn founder and CEO Steven M.H. Wallman. “Both CUNA Mutual and MEMBERS Development Company are committed to developing and offering innovative new products that maintain the value and quality credit union members expect and demand. We believe that MEMBERS FOLIO Investing, which uses new technology to offer investors a new way to invest and a great value, is a terrific addition to that menu.”
MEMBERS FOLIO Investing lets investors buy and trade individual stocks or entire portfolios, called “Folios,” with just a few clicks of the mouse. Investors can purchase and modify &ldqu;Ready-to-Go” Folios or create their own Folios from scratch—all for a low, flat fee of $29.95 per month. For that amount, investors can create and trade up to three Folios, which can be in up to three different accounts (for example, a retirement account, joint account, and custodial account) or all in one account. Each Folio can include up to 50 stocks.
Investors can buy and trade stocks as often as they wish in twice-daily trading windows at no additional charge. They may also use FOLIOfn’s unique, automated tax planning system to help meet their tax objectives and manage tax paperwork. In short, MEMBERS FOLIO Investing combines the diversification benefits and simplicity of buying mutual funds with the control and tax savings of direct stock ownership.
MEMBERS FOLIO Investing also includes traditional discount brokerage services such as direct trades for $14.95, and a new option designed especially for beginning investors. The new service, which will be available early in 2001, will feature a very affordable, easy, dollar-based stock investing system.
“This is truly an innovative package of services,” Henry said. “There’s no other product like it in the credit union marketplace.”
“The FOLIOfn range of brokerage services will meet the needs of every level of credit union member investor,” Wallman said. “As investors add to their assets or learn more about investing, they can move from our new service for novice investors to more traditional brokerage services or begin to use the power of MEMBERS FOLIO Investing.”
“This is the perfect combination of an advanced offering that draws on new technology to meet the diverse needs of credit union members,” Henry added.
MEMBERS Development Company, owned by 37 credit unions or their service organizations and the CUNA Mutual Group, was formed earlier this year to leverage their combined resources to help credit unions expand member services portfolio with high-value member products and services. The new MEMBERS FOLIOfn investment products will be made available to credit unions through CUNA Mutual and its field force.
About CUNA Mutual Group
CUNA Mutual Group (www.cunamutual.com) is the leading financial services provider to credit unions and their members worldwide, offering insurance, investment and technological solutions through strategic relationships and modern service channels.
About Folio Investing
Folio Investing, a division of FOLIOfn Investments, Inc., is an online brokerage that enables investors to manage stocks, ETFs, and mutual funds as integrated investment portfolios called “Folios” that deliver better control, greater transparency, and lower cost. Investors can create their own Folios, much like creating personalized ETFs or mutual funds, or invest in over 100 Ready-to-Go Folios representing market indices, sectors, geographical regions, target dates, and more. The Folio Unlimited Plan features unlimited commission-free trading in twice-daily windows for only $29 a month or $290 a year. Ready-to-Go Folios can be managed or unmanaged, are not registered investment companies, and are offered by FOLIOfn Investments, Inc., a registered broker-dealer. FOLIOfn Investments, Inc. does not provide investment, tax, or legal advice. FOLIOfn Investments, Inc., is a member of FINRA/SIPC.