
In a Nutshell: If you’re in the market for a new financial institution, you may be weighing whether to bank with an innovative credit union or one that values financial education. With Michigan State University Federal Credit Union, you don’t have to choose. The credit union partners with fintechs to develop products and offers educational seminars that can help members manage their money.
Depositing your cash in a bank or credit union gives you peace of mind that your money is out of the reach of criminals. But when you partner with a financial institution, you get more than security — you can also use all the innovative tools it offers to help you manage your funds. Working with a bank or credit union seems like a no-brainer, but financial institutions weren’t always as plentiful as they are today.
Faced with limited options, people in the past sometimes turned to creative methods to keep their money safe. You’ve probably heard stories of people who stashed their money under their mattresses for safekeeping. That approach always seemed less than ideal to me.
I’d be worried that money kept under a mattress would tear somehow. Even if the bills were safe from harm, it seems like bundles of cash could create lumpy surfaces that prevent a comfortable night’s sleep.
The founders of Michigan State University Federal Credit Union (MSUFCU) didn’t store the credit union’s deposits under a mattress in the institution’s early days. They found a much more practical piece of furniture to house their money — a desk drawer. We caught up with Allison Horn, MSUFCU’s Vice President of Executive Communication and Legislative Affairs, to learn more about the credit union’s origins and advancements since forming.

During the Great Depression, a group of faculty and staff from Michigan State University (MSU) recognized they needed to be able to offer loans and credit lines to members of the university community. The group’s use of a desk drawer to store funds in its early days is commemorated today through MSUFCU’s Desk Drawer Foundation, which supports charitable giving in the communities the credit union serves.
Michigan State University Federal Credit Union has 1,200 employees and operates 23 branches in Michigan. It’s expanding into Illinois to open branches in downtown Chicago.
“Our expansion into Chicago is something we’ve been looking into for probably close to five years, because we always measure where our members live,” Horn told us. “We already have a lot of members in the Chicago area, and, since we’ve announced our plans there, we’ve got a lot more members opening accounts there. A lot of institutions are shrinking their footprint size, but we’ve found that members of all generations want to visit our branches.”
Horn told us that some of MSUFCU’s members stop into branches for different reasons than they used to. With online banking and mobile deposit services, gone are the days when people needed to visit their bank to deposit their paycheck. But members still need consultative services.
“Members come in to talk and seek advice about their first time buying a home or car,” Horn told us. “We’re really finding that our branches continue to spur growth. We see a lot of value in continuing to build branches so we can make sure we’re physically present for our members just as much as we’re available online.”
Fintech Partnerships Fuel Innovation at the Credit Union
When I think of credit unions, I think of reliability and an emphasis on supporting community activities. Horn told us that one of the many things MSUFCU is known for is its innovation. The credit union partners with 25 fintech companies that have numerous specialities, including educational and insurance services.
Michigan State University Federal Credit Union’s commitment to innovation is evident from the company’s organizational chart. The credit union has an innovation team and a Chief Innovation Officer to keep its goals on track. Horn told us members of MSUFCU’s executive staff frequently speak at industry events about innovation, working with fintechs, and how to encourage members to adopt new technologies.
With initiatives like expanding into a new state and leveraging the power of fintechs, you could think MSUFCU had forgotten its roots. But the credit union is perhaps more committed than ever to its core business of serving the faculty, staff, and students of MSU.
“We dedicate a lot of our time, energy, and resources into educating students, particularly incoming freshmen and first-generation students who are now kind of living on their own for the first time,” Horn told us. “Despite all our growth and efforts to expand our footprint, we still ensure that we’re here for the students.”
Many of us remember our college experiences as being full of relatively carefree days, but starting a new year of schooling isn’t without its hassles. Simply moving into your dorm or off-campus housing is an activity that can present plenty of obstacles before classes even start.
Michigan State University Federal Credit Union is there to lend a hand to students moving into their new quarters each year.
“We send about 100 of our employees to MSU’s campus to help out with all the new students coming in,” Horn said. “We have a branch on campus and another nearby, and our whole organization really volunteers a lot with the students at events all over campus. We tend to spend a lot of time opening new accounts at the start of a school year.”
Deposit and Loan Products Help Secure Financial Footing
You don’t have to be a student or alumni of MSU to join MSUFCU. Horn told us that anyone who lives or works in Michigan is eligible to become a member. As the credit union moves into new territories, it’ll open doors for new members to join MSUFCU.
Organized through the Reseda Group, Michigan State University Federal Credit Union invites its fintech partners to a monthly meeting so they can connect with each other and explore new ways to serve credit union members. Horn told us the credit union and its fintech partners are exploring nontraditional ways to lend to members.
“With the gig economy, you might not have a lot of those traditional jobs with W-2’s,” Horn told us. “We’re looking to have non-traditional products, services, and ways to lend to members because their profile isn’t going to look the same as someone we’d lend to 10 or 15 years ago. It’s very important to develop these solutions for people who have limited or bad credit.”

The credit union’s Rebuild Checking account helps members build, or rebuild, a firm financial foundation. The account comes with much of what you’d expect from a core checking product, including an ATM card and personal checks, but it also provides members access to their credit scores and opportunities to learn about managing money.
Michigan State University Federal Credit Union hosts a community outreach initiative called The Culture of Finances to help members overcome their financial fears. Horn told us the program helps members learn how to improve their credit and avoid financial pitfalls.
“We just launched the program about eight months back and we’ve already had really good feedback from the 82 graduates who’ve completed it,” Horn told us. “We hear stories from people who’ve gone their whole lives without ever really understanding how credit or the banking system functions. We’ve been happy to help our members in this way and offer them products that help them succeed.”
All Ages Can Benefit From Financial Education
We’ve all sat through boring grade school or college classes on subjects we thought we’d never have use for in our real lives. But financial education can help us no matter what stage of life we’re in.
Michigan State University Federal Credit Union employs a team of financial educators that focus on making sure the credit union’s educational programs cover diverse money topics. Horn told us MSUFCU offers a series of seminars that help members manage student loans, establish a budget, prepare to buy their first home or car, and put money aside for their golden years.
The credit union serves more than 350,000 members, and, as you can guess with a group that large, they have a wide range of financial interests.

“We want to be who our members turn to for help, whether they’re in retirement and looking to navigate Medicare issues or it’s their first time opening a checking account,” Horn told us. “We need to teach them how to use their accounts and keep their money safe.”
Michigan State University Federal Credit Union offers products that suit members as they move through life and face different financial challenges. Horn told us that studies show people have 12 or 13 different financial apps on their phones, but MSUFCU aims to be a central point of information for its members that provides consistent and actionable advice.
With all that MSUFCU does for its community, it’s no surprise that the credit union also helps its competitors serve their members.
“We see a lot of smaller institutions that can’t keep up with compliance, and they’re not able to offer all the products they want to because of how quickly technology is evolving,” Horn told us. “It’s really been our mission to help all of the credit unions around us. That’s a key difference between banks and credit unions — we work together, and we’re all rooting for each other.”