ARLINGTON, Va. – NAFCU Services Corp.'s Preferred Provider program continues to expand with 18 companies now partnering with NSC. NSC is a wholly-owned subsidiary of NAFCU. NSC President Keith Nolan thinks of NSC as NAFCU's CUSO. "I need to find how to add value back to the parent company, and I need to create economies of scale for NAFCU members," said Nolan. There's no hiding it, NSC's Preferred Partner program is an endorsement program like many trade associations have. But Nolan said NSCU is doing a lot of hard work that the credit union would normally do, and it is negotiating deals that bring significant savings. "We partnered with Elan Financial Services for ATM and debit processing and NAFCU credit unions will receive a 21% discount on the transaction fees, which is pretty significant in that line of business," said Nolan. He also stressed that NSC won't add partners for the sake of adding them. "I get five or six calls a week from vendors. In the end the decision to add somebody is going to be up to about 25 credit unions," said Nolan. Those credit unions he refers to are both the NSC Board members and the NAFCU Board members. The NSC Board first has to sign off on the vendor, and then ultimately the NAFCU Board. Nolan said this eliminates the potential of just adding vendors for volume's sake. NSC has added some cutting edge products this year. For example, it's now offering an overdraft protection product, which itself is controversial in some CU circles, through Allied Solution, one of its 18 Preferred Partners. Nolan said that is one of the most popular NSC offerings right now. Another new vendor in its stable is J.R. Bruno and Associates, a business lending specialist focusing on SBA loans, a hot area for credit unions. Your Financial Roadmap is a product Nolan is excited about. It essentially breaks through the confusion of financial terms and scenarios to help consumers meet financial goals. "When people want to do financial planning, they're a little hesitant. They're not familiar with terms and jargon. This breaks down the situation so the average consumer can understand it," said Nolan. Debt protection from AIG/American General is another cutting edge product, said Nolan. NSC also reacts to what's happening in the industry, for example it has a USA Patriot Act compliance vendor to help CUs deal with the new law. The following are NSC's 18 Preferred Partners: *AIG/American General (Debt Protection) *Allied Solutions (CPI), (GAP), Mechanical Breakdown Protection (MBP) and Overdraft Courtesy Protection *American Express (Travelers Cheques) *Bankers Systems Inc. (Patriot Act Compliance Solutions) *BISYS Retirement Services (IRA Programs and Solutions) *Credit Union Tax Service (TRE Financial Services) *Deluxe Financial Services (Paper Payment Systems) *lan Financial Services (ATM/Debit Processing); Financial Network (Investment, Insurance and Advisory Services) *Financial Planning Information (Jonathan Pond's "Your Financial Road Map") *J.R. Bruno & Associates (Small Business Lending) *KDA Holdings (Credit Union Design, Construction and Consulting) *NIFCU$ (Money Market Common Trust Fund for Credit Unions) *Prime Alliance (Mortgage Processing and Fulfillment) *Progeny Marketing Innovations (AD&D Insurance and enhanced checking programs) *RetireXcel Credit Union Executive Retirement Program (BENMARK) *Securian Financial Network (Credit Life & Disability Insurance and StreamLend) *Xacta Corporation (Enterprise Risk Management/Data Security)