Two small town banks are the latest to close in Allegany County
ALCO Federal Credit Union is stepping up its game
By Andrew Harris
Banking has changed quickly in the last decade. Regional banks like Steuben Trust Company have been swallowed up by larger national banks like Community Bank.
While the lines can still be long at the drive-thru teller windows, most people now do their banking online. It isn’t hard to understand why the traditional small town banks are closing branches.
The small town bank now has to compete with massive online lenders like Rocket Mortgage, Ally, and SoFi. They also have a new level of competition from federal credit unions.
Credit unions like our amazing partner, ALCO Federal Credit Union, have emerged as a strong competitor to the traditional bank. Just a quick comparison in interest rates, overdraft fees, and deposit rates and its not hard to figure out why ALCO is expanding as “big” banks are shutting down branches.
ALCO President and CEO Michael Miller explains that the small communities that are losing traditional bank branch services are calling and asking him: “Please open up an ALCO in our town!!” Stay tuned for more on that subject as ALCO has plans to keep growing.
Read Millers column earlier this summer that explains why ALCO is different.
