121 Financial Credit Union Launches Two New CUSOs

The $622 million 121 Financial Credit Union launched two new CUSOs this week – one offers a new virtual security model to prevent malware attacks while the second provides a faster asset recovery process for credit unions.

The Jacksonville, Fla.-based credit union partnered with the Cupertino, Calif.-based Acreto, a technology company specializing in virtual security, to form the CUSO named Qu-Secure.

“For some time now, our industry has needed an entirely new model of delivering security, not just another technology service that further fragments an already highly fragmented security network,” Paul Blackstone, 121 Financial’s COO, said. “Qu-Secure comprehensively addresses this issue while reducing other operational challenges that credit unions have experienced for years.”

According to Qu-Secure, traditional layered security products create inconsistency across networks, which leads to gaps that become easy targets for hackers. What’s more, the complexity of layered security products requires increasing human and financial resources to manage.

“Past solutions frequently became obsolete within a few years, thus requiring credit unions to continually re-invest in a myriad of solutions to solve ever-evolving security challenges,” Babak Pasdar, Acreto’s founder and CEO, said. “The model simply wasn’t working, but this new security model bridges all of these gaps and helps credit unions exceed regulatory requirements.”

Qu-Secure said it leverages the Secure Access Service Edge (SASE) model, which converges all network and security solutions into a single cloud service that enables credit unions of all sizes to quickly secure all technological assets no matter where they are located. In the ever-evolving regulatory environment, SASE also enables rapid compliance with industry regulations without requiring significant investments in additional technologies that may soon be obsolete, according to Qu-Secure.

121 Financial and its partners also announced another new CUSO named DAY11, which manages all operational aspects of turning around assets such as repossessed cars, boats and recreational vehicles.

Using a pooled, centralized collections and turnaround model, DAY11 said it helps credit unions save an average of $1,600 per vehicle by removing the need to pay expensive lot management, auction and other fees.

The CUSO’s auto industry experts also deliver significantly higher-than-average return per asset, helping to reduce loan losses and providing for a faster asset recovery process, according to DAY11.