With Interest in Account Aggregation Waning, MEMBERS Development Drops Prices

NAPLES, Fla. – Bad timing and the events of Sept. 11 are hurting adoption of account aggregation, said John Henry, president/CEO of MEMBERS Development Company, so MDC is revamping its pricing structure to try to break down some barriers. MDC, in partnership with aggregation giant Yodlee, rolled out its product 18 months ago. So far adoption has been pretty weak, with just six CUs up and running, and four more in the pipeline. “Interest has been significantly less than what we thought. We are however pleased in the quality and satisfaction of those credit unions that are using it,” said Henry. MDC is a consortium of CUNA Mutual and 56 credit unions that is dedicated to engaging in R&D to bring products to market that its CU members feel are lacking. Prior to developing its aggregation product, MDC surveyed its members to gauge the interest level, and it was very high for aggregation said Anne Knopp-Minchk, product manger for CUNA Mutual Group. So with 56 CU members and just 10 CUs on board for aggregation, what happened to all the interest? “It think it was purely a matter of timing and lack of urgency. There was a lack of member demand, and when something is not urgent, even though it’s important and nice, it doesn’t get the immediate attention of the credit union,” said Knopp-Minchk. Knopp-Minchk’s point on urgency may be dead on based on what some large banks did early on. When aggregation seemed like it was going to be a killer app, a number of big banks rushed to make the product available so they didn’t lose customers to another aggregation provider, but as consumer demand waned, that urgency waned as well. Henry said not only has consumer demand been weak, but so has demand at the financial institution level. If banks and credit unions don’t get the product out there, it won’t become a known quantity among consumers said Henry. MDC is hoping a more favorable pricing plan will get more CUs interested again. At press time, MDC was holding its owners meeting in Naples, Fla.. One of the things Henry presented was the revamped price structure. The goal said Henry is to at least get CUs to try aggregation, so MDC is offering a 12-month trial offer that has no set-up fee, and $1.50 to $2.00 month fee per registered member. However, under this low-cost option, the member’s credit union data, unless it is already part of the 7,500 institutions Yodlee aggregates, will not be aggregated. This option is also not branded for the individual CU. The second new pricing option is an annual renewable agreement that carries a one-time $10,000 setup and maintenance fee that ensures a member’s CU data is also included in aggregation. The third option is branded aggregation that carries a two-year renewal agreement and a $20,000 to $65,000 license and set-up fee and $0.78 per member per moth fee. There are also $2,000 to $4,000 annual administration and maintenance fees. One of the benefits of this option is it includes extended summary and detailed reporting, and is integrated with the CU’s Web site. [email protected]