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Adventure Credit Union has officially gone live on Member Driven Technologies’ (MDT) core processing platform, a move that supports the credit union’s growth following its merger with Astera Credit Union earlier this year.
The Grand Rapids, Mich.-based Adventure Credit Union expanded its charter to serve the entire state of Michigan and, after evaluating both organizations’ technology stacks, chose MDT as its core provider. Astera had a long-standing relationship with MDT, and the newly combined institution saw value in continuing that partnership. The core migration was completed with minimal downtime and marked a key step toward the full operational merger, expected later this year.
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The combined organization manages $647 million in assets with 185 employees who run 11 branches and serve more than 46,000 members.
“Coming together with Astera Credit Union is empowering us to strengthen our presence and better serve more communities across Michigan,” Amanda Garabedian, president/CEO of Adventure, said. “MDT’s guidance and support has been invaluable during this process.”
Garabedian also joined MDT’s board of directors as Adventure becomes an owner of the CUSO. “I’m impressed by MDT’s unwavering dedication to helping credit unions navigate complex financial technology ecosystems,” she said.
MDT President/CEO Chris Kowal praised the partnership. “Adventure Credit Union is well-positioned to provide strong financial resources and guidance to more members than ever across Michigan,” he said. “We are proud to support this charge and thrilled to welcome Amanda to our board.”
MDT now supports over 100 credit unions nationwide with core processing, cloud-based services and digital transformation solutions.
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Michael Ogden
Editor-in-Chief at CU Times. To connect, email at [email protected]. As Editor-in-Chief of CU Times since 2016, Michael Ogden has led the editorial team in all aspects of content strategy and execution, including the creation of the publication’s exclusive and proprietary research database of the credit union industry’s economic landscape. Under Michael’s leadership, CU Times has successfully shifted to an all-digital editorial product with new focuses on the payments, fraud, lending and regulatory beats. Most recently, he introduced a data-focused editorial product for subscribers that breaks down credit union issues into hard data, allowing for a deeper and more factual narrative for readers. In 2024, he launched the "Shared Accounts With CU Times" podcast, which offers a fresh, inside-the-newsroom perspective through interviews with leaders from the credit union industry and the regulatory world. He dives into pressing credit union issues, while revealing the personalities working behind-the-scenes to push the credit union world forward. His background includes years as a radio and TV anchor/reporter and a public relations and digital/social media manager, where he covered the food and music industries, as well as cooperatives and credit unions. Over the years, he has launched numerous exclusive video and podcast series, including a successful series of interactive backstage interviews with musicians at music festivals, showcasing his social media and live streaming production skills.
