First Tech Federal Credit Union
Company type | Credit union |
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Industry |
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Founded | January 14, 1952 |
Headquarters | , |
Number of locations | 41 branches (2020) |
Key people | Greg Mitchell (President/CEO) |
Services | Checking accounts, savings accounts, mortgages, loans, credit cards, home equity lines of credit, investment services, insurance services, tax services |
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Total assets |
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Total equity |
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Members | 620,000 (2020) |
Number of employees | 1550 (2020)[2] |
Website | www |
First Tech Federal Credit Union (or First Tech) is a federally chartered credit union headquartered in San Jose, California. It is regulated under the authority of the National Credit Union Administration (NCUA). First Tech has over 620,000 members, and over 12 billion dollars in assets with 41 branches located mostly in high technology business centers of California, Colorado, Oregon, Washington and five other states and Puerto Rico.[3][4] It was the first financial institution to offer telephone interactive voice response access and online banking.[citation needed]
History
The credit union was founded as Tektronix Federal Credit Union, formed by seven Tektronix employees on January 14, 1952. In 1961, the name was changed to Tektronix Employees Federal Credit Union to reflect the credit union's membership. From very early on, technical innovation was emphasized and reflected in First Tech's motto of "Think Forward".[5] As early as 1976, the credit union began using computers for online data processing. By 1979, Tektronix Employees Federal Credit Union had begun the use of ATMs. In 1985, the credit union unveiled "Call 24", which allowed members to check balances and transfer funds by phone.
In 1986, the name was changed to First Technology Credit Union and the membership was opened to include employees in technology industries of the Pacific Northwest. In 1989, First Technology Credit Union developed and implemented the first online banking. In 1992, Microsoft became involved. The 1995 launch of the company's website paved the way for the credit union to become the second financial institution in the world to perform secure internet transactions. In 1997, the name was shortened to First Tech Credit Union. First Tech began offering mobile banking in 2000, account aggregation in 2001, and biometric two-factor authentication in 2007.[6] With over 156,000 members, and over 1.8 billion dollars in assets in 2007,[7] First Tech was one of the largest state chartered credit unions in the Pacific Northwest.
In March 2010, the company announced it would merge with California-based Addison Avenue Federal Credit Union, which served the employees of Hewlett Packard Company, Agilent Technologies, CH2M Hill, and various other technology based companies, pending government and member approval.[8] The deal was approved by the government and credit union members, and became effective on January 1, 2011, with the new entity named First Tech Federal Credit Union.[9]
Online banking conversion
First Tech announced, in 2014, their decision to replace existing desktop and mobile banking platform while also converting members to a new bill payments provider.[10]
In October 2015, the Credit Union implemented initial changes[11] to their online and ebilling system and began converting members. The transition incrementally converts groups of members to the new platform over an extended period to ensure minimal disruption. CEO Greg Mitchell addresses members' challenges in an email to the Credit Union's members on 3/8/2016.
Products
Besides standard banking services, First Tech also offers investment, insurance, and tax services to its members, including free bill payment service, an account aggregation service, and online access to check images. The union's designated ABA routing transit number is 321180379.
References
- ^ "2013 Annual Report" (PDF). First Tech Federal Credit Union. Archived from the original (PDF) on 2015-03-29. Retrieved 2015-04-05.
- ^ "Second Annual 'Season of giving'" (PDF). First Tech Federal Credit Union. Archived from the original (PDF) on 2015-03-29. Retrieved 2015-04-05.
- ^ "Branch locations". Retrieved 2014-08-23.
- ^ "Addison Avenue / First Tech Merger Receives Member Approval" (PDF). Retrieved 2011-01-16.
- ^ Franklin, Diane (Feb 2004). "Tortoise or Hare?". Credit Union Management. Retrieved 2008-06-21.
- ^ Neil Roiter, Senior Technology Editor (21 April 2008). "Keystroke recognition aids online authentication at credit union". Information Security magazine. Retrieved 2008-06-21.
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has generic name (help) - ^ "2007 Annual Report" (PDF). Retrieved 2008-06-21.
- ^ Manning, Jeff (March 10, 2010). "First Tech Federal Credit Union announces merger". The Oregonian. Retrieved 11 March 2010.
- ^ "First Tech, Addison Avenue credit union merger OK'd". OregonLive.com. The Associated Press. December 3, 2010. Retrieved 6 December 2010.
- ^ "How First Tech Avoided Painful Integration Woes". Web Only. Retrieved 2016-05-24.
- ^ https://mint.lc.intuit.com/questions/1250068-first-tech-credit-union-is-in-the-process-of-changing-their-online-banking-system-i-am-in-the-test-pilot