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Extensia Financial, a lending CUSO with a history dating back to the late 90s, now bears the name of its majority shareholder, AVANA Companies – it is now known as AVANA CUSO.
"Through shared staff, shared technology, shared vision and passion, and a shared commitment to delivering superior lending services and solutions, AVANA is able to better serve credit unions and their members," Sanat Patel, chief lending officer and managing partner for AVANA Companies, stated. "The rebrand and name update is a proud acknowledgement and reinforcement of how integral the CUSO is to our ecosystem."
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Natasha Chilingerian
Natasha Chilingerian has been immersed in the credit union industry for over a decade. She first joined CU Times in 2011 as a freelance writer, and following a two-year hiatus from 2013-2015, during which time she served as a communications specialist for Xceed Financial Credit Union (now Kinecta Federal Credit Union), she re-joined the CU Times team full-time as managing editor. She was promoted to executive editor in 2019. In the earlier days of her career, Chilingerian focused on news and lifestyle journalism, serving as a writer and editor for numerous regional publications in Oregon, Louisiana, South Carolina and the San Francisco Bay Area. In addition, she holds experience in marketing copywriting for companies in the finance and technology space. At CU Times, she covers People and Community news, cybersecurity, fintech partnerships, marketing, workplace culture, leadership, DEI, branch strategies, digital banking and more. She currently works remotely and splits her time between Southern California and Portland, Ore.
