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Nov. 12, 2013 – NAFCU's Economic and CU Monitor report for November reveals technology to be near the forefront of NAFCU members' minds as they consider their member-owners' technological savvy and set plans for complying with EMV technology requirements by 2015.

The survey showed that one-fourth of credit union respondents believe their members are "above average" or extremely proficient with regard to knowledge of new technology. In terms of self-evaluation, nearly half of credit union respondents rated themselves as above average or "very high" on the technological competitiveness scale; more than half plan to be at that stage within five years.

"Technology is advancing on the credit union landscape at a quickening pace," according to the Monitor. "Whether it is responding to competition or to demand from tech-savvy members, credit unions are ratcheting up their offerings of products and services on the cutting edge of technology."

The most common new product offering respondents said they were focusing on was the EMV, or Europay, Mastercard and Visa, cards, which are set to replace magnetic stripe cards. Liability for fraud will shift to issuers and merchants who do not offer EMV cards or terminals in October of 2015 – a strong motivator for many of the 70 percent of respondents already planning to offer the new cards. Nearly 80 percent of those in the planning stages to offer EMV cards said they expect to be ready for the 2015 deadline.

Meanwhile, most credit unions have already taken advantage of new technology available today – specifically social networking sites and mobile banking apps, which 68 and 81 percent of respondents, respectively, already offer their members. In addition, 76 percent offer dedicated mobile websites for members' convenience.