TNB says it is still in the portfolio market

ARLINGTON, Va. – Eight weeks after it made the announcement that it had entered the market for credit union credit card portfolios, TNB Card Services still has yet to buy one – but affirmed recently that it continues to pursue purchase opportunities. TNB Card Services and Payment Services for Credit Unions (PSCU) made a splash at the beginning of May by announcing that they were conceding to market realities and would enter the market for card portfolios. Previously both organizations were on record advising credit unions not to sell, a position TNB said it has maintained even in the wake of entering the market as a buyer. But while PSCU has closed a number of purchase deals on behalf of its bank partner, Cincinnati-based National City Group, TNB says that it has lost a bid to buy one portfolio, had credit unions decide not to sell others and declined to bid on still more. “We are still evaluating the opportunities,” said Glen Lee, senior vice president of TNB Card Services. “And our message remains the same, whether credit unions decide to sell or hold their portfolios, we’ll be there to help,” he said. As an example of the group’s willingness to help credit unions keep their portfolios, Lee pointed to a recent announcement from the $480 million EDS Credit Union, based in Plano, Texas, that it would use TNB Card Services to service its $3 million card portfolio. Lee also noted that some of the “recent entries” into portfolio purchasing “appeared to have had most of their success from within their credit union members,” he said. By contrast, he said, TNB has had very seen very little pro-sale activity among its members and has done most of its bidding on outside portfolios, he added.