# How a $440M Credit Union Out-Innovates Institutions Ten Times Its Size
_Published: 2026-10-22T00:00:00.000-04:00_

A $440M credit union is out-innovating banks ten times its size. The foundation: a modern core and partners who tell it the truth.

_A modern core let a St. Cloud Financial Credit Union move with the agility usually reserved for far larger institutions. _

When Jed Meyer, President and CEO of St. Cloud Financial Credit Union, joined the 96-year-old Minnesota institution 12 years ago, it managed about $100 million in assets. Today, that number stands at $440 million. Along the way, St. Cloud became the first credit union in the country to launch a proprietary stablecoin, and the first to launch a digital asset vault, putting Bitcoin, Ethereum, and USDC directly into its core operating system.

For a credit union its size, that kind of first-mover innovation is rare, but Meyer says it isn't luck. It's a foundation built on a trusted partnership that enables real-time innovation.

## **The Problem Every Small Credit Union Knows**

While it’s imperative to have clean data sets, it’s important to pull together and leverage that data into actionable insights.

Meyer credits nCino with automating fast access to the credit union's own data and, more valuably, with interpreting it, not just aggregating it. The operational payoff is real: frontline managers can read and act on the data without pulling an executive off their own work to translate it. "That makes it much easier for my lower-level management staff to interpret it," Meyer notes. Decisions move faster because the people closest to the work can act on the data themselves.

Throughout his 26 years in the industry, Meyer says he's rarely seen one company's systems talk to each other cleanly. nCino has been the exception.

## **Trust Is the Foundation**

When it comes to a true partnership, features are important, but trust is what Meyer and his team deem more valuable.

Meyer's trust comes from candor. nCino has told him directly when a direction might take St. Cloud past what they're the right partner for — and that honesty, he explains, is why he trusts them. "I really respect that, because I know they care about our business."

For Meyer, it's the line between a partner and a vendor. "Partners are people who care about your business," he adds. "With vendors, it's all about price."

## **A Direct Message to Credit Unions Still on Legacy Systems**

Meyer doesn't hold back when asked what he'd tell a peer institution still running on legacy technology.

“You need to move and move quickly. The agility you need for tomorrow's pace of change, you're not going to survive without it,” he warns.

He points to St. Cloud's Digital Asset Vault, developed in partnership with DaLand CUSO and powered by its Coin2Core® technology, as proof of what's possible when a modern core is paired with an ecosystem of innovative partners: “We built it right within our systems. We're holding Bitcoin, Ethereum, and USDC in our core operating system. I can do that in a modern core. You can't do that in old legacy systems.”

## **The Foundation Behind the Innovation**

That approach extends beyond any single technology partner. St. Cloud Financial Credit Union's Digital Asset Vault was developed in partnership with DaLand CUSO and is powered by its Coin2Core® technology, allowing the credit union to integrate digital assets directly into its core environment. It's an example of the broader strategy Meyer describes: choosing a strong foundational platform while maintaining the flexibility to bring in specialized partners that can help the credit union continue to innovate.

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