RALEIGH, N.C. – More than 53,000 members of the $13 billion State Employees' Credit Union have made use of the CU's payday lending alternative product since the product was put into place four years ago, the CU has announced. Dubbed the Salary Advance Loan Program, the loans have an annual percentage rate of 12% versus the more than 300% interest rates which many payday lenders charge. The loans can be up to $500 and must be repaid within a month. The program became so successful in its first two years that the CU in effect became the biggest payday lender in the state, according to CEO Jim Blaine, so the credit union added a cash account to the program. The Cash Account salary loan is just like the original regular loan but it automatically deducts 5% of the loan amount and puts it into a savings account for the member to have to use in the future and thus not need the loans. Members have put aside over $7.8 million into the accounts over the past two years, the CU said.