How Credit Unions Tackle Financial Inclusion in the Era of Big Tech & Big Brands

By: Ben Malena 💥  Co-Founder AlgoPear

The Original Credit Union Promise

Credit unions were founded on the principle of inclusion: providing fair access to financial services for members overlooked by big banks. That mission has never been more relevant than today. Millions of Americans — especially Millennials, Gen Z, gig workers, and immigrant households — remain underbanked or underserved, relying on payday loans, check-cashing services, or expensive fintech alternatives.

According to the FDIC, nearly 6 million U.S. households were unbanked as of 2021, and another 19 million households were underbanked — meaning they rely on costly alternative financial services. Credit unions were built to solve this very problem, yet big brands and fintechs are stepping in faster to capture the opportunity.

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The Rising Gap in Access

Despite advances in digital finance, financial exclusion is shifting, not shrinking.

• Gig Economy Workers – Over 60 million Americans participate in the gig economy, yet many lack access to affordable credit or retirement accounts because of irregular income streams.
• Young Adults – Nearly 1 in 4 Gen Z consumers report difficulty accessing basic credit. At the same time, Gen Z is the fastest-growing group of investors, with 54% of Gen Z adults owning investments through apps like Robinhood and Coinbase.
• Communities of Color – According to the Federal Reserve, 40% of Latino households and 45% of Black households report little to no emergency savings, compared to 24% of white households. Traditional credit requirements and legacy systems reinforce these inequities.
• Rural Communities – Digital deserts still exist. The CFPB notes that rural households are more likely to be unbanked than urban ones, creating geographic gaps in access.

Big brands are moving quickly:

• Cash App provides instant accounts, debit cards, and investing tools.
• Robinhood gamifies investing with no minimums.
• Apple integrates high-yield savings into Apple Wallet, onboarding millions in days.

If credit unions don’t step in, financial inclusion will be outsourced to Silicon Valley — not rooted in communities where it belongs.

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The Advice Gap: When Members Feel Helpless

For many members, the greatest barrier to financial wellness isn’t just lack of access to accounts — it’s lack of access to trusted advice. Traditional financial advisors typically require high minimum balances, often $100,000 or more in investable assets, shutting out the very members who need the most help.

That creates a structural divide:

• High-net-worth individuals get professional guidance to grow wealth.
• Everyday members with small-dollar deposits are left to figure it out alone.

How Credit Unions Fall Short

Credit unions, despite their mission of inclusion, often lack the digital-first resources or advisory services to support small depositors. A young member with $500 in savings or a gig worker with irregular income doesn’t qualify for portfolio management, financial planning, or investment advice. Instead, they are offered basic checking and savings accounts with little engagement, reinforcing the perception that true financial growth is out of reach.

The Member’s Perspective

This exclusion has a very real impact on how members feel:

• Helplessness – Members know they should be building wealth, but without access to advice, they don’t know where to begin.
• Stress – Living paycheck to paycheck, without financial literacy tools or coaching, creates constant anxiety about bills, debt, and the future.
• Distrust – When members feel their institution can’t help them move forward, they lose faith in the idea that credit unions are truly “people helping people.”

A 2023 PwC Financial Wellness Survey found that 57% of employees say finances are the top cause of stress in their lives, with younger workers and lower-income households feeling the strain most intensely. Without intervention, that stress drives members straight into the arms of fintech giants promising quick solutions.

The Shift to Fintech Giants

Fintechs understand the psychology of the small-dollar depositor. They design products that give members immediate empowerment — even if the deposits are small. Robinhood lets a member invest $5 into fractional shares. Coinbase rewards users for holding or staking even modest amounts of crypto. Betterment offers automated investing with no human advisor required.

This makes members feel:

• Seen – Their small deposits are still valued.
• Capable – Even a $10 investment feels like progress.
• Included – They don’t need $100,000 to get started.

Credit unions, by contrast, risk being viewed as static storage vaults — places to hold money, not grow it. For younger generations driven by the urgency of the Great Wealth Transfer, that distinction could be fatal for credit union relevance.

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The Democratization of Wealth

The future of inclusion isn’t just about access to accounts — it’s about access to wealth-building resources. For the first time in history, everyday consumers can invest in asset classes once reserved for the elite.

• New Asset Classes – Crypto, fractional shares of stock, ETFs, tokenized real estate, and alternative investments are reshaping who gets to build wealth.
• Low Barriers to Entry – On platforms like Robinhood and Coinbase, members can start investing with as little as $1.
• Younger Generations Leading the Way – A Charles Schwab study found that 70% of Millennials and Gen Z believe investing is the only path to building wealth, compared to just 30% of Baby Boomers at the same age.

This shift represents both a threat and an opportunity for credit unions. If they fail to offer these tools, members will continue migrating to fintechs. But if they embrace democratized investing, credit unions can unlock their next growth engine.

Selene AI makes this possible by embedding multi-asset investing directly into credit union platforms, ensuring members don’t have to leave the credit union ecosystem to access wealth-building resources.

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Why Credit Unions Must Evolve — Now

Credit unions have always prided themselves on community trust, member-first models, and competitive rates. But in today’s environment, those advantages are invisible to Millennials and Gen Z if the digital experience isn’t frictionless, engaging, and modern.

The competition has moved beyond rates and loan approvals; the real battle is for daily engagement and long-term mindshare. Big brands like Apple, Google, and X are embedding themselves into members’ routines with sleek apps, instant deposits, and lifestyle perks.

The Cost of Inaction

• Member Attrition – A 2024 Cornerstone Advisors survey found that 47% of Millennials opened a financial account with a fintech or big brand in the last two years, compared to just 15% with a credit union.
• Aging Membership Base – With the average credit union member now 47 years old, failure to engage younger demographics leaves future growth stagnant.
• Mergers & Consolidations – In 2023, over 150 credit unions merged, citing lack of competitiveness as a primary reason.
• The Great Wealth Transfer – With $84 trillion expected to pass from Baby Boomers to younger generations by 2045, institutions that don’t engage Millennials and Gen Z will miss the single largest asset migration in history.

The Member Expectation Gap

Younger members compare credit unions not to banks, but to apps they use daily. If Robinhood offers instant deposits, Coinbase offers staking rewards, and Apple delivers seamless cashback, a credit union app with 2–3 day transfers feels prehistoric.

This expectation gap threatens to make credit unions irrelevant to the next generation — unless they evolve now.

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Selene AI: Modern Inclusion at Scale

The promise of financial inclusion has always been central to credit unions — but delivering it in today’s digital-first world requires technology built for scale, personalization, and daily engagement. This is where Selene AI becomes the competitive advantage.

The Digital Intelligence for Every Member

Selene AI removes the barriers that have historically excluded small-dollar depositors from wealth-building. Members no longer need $100,000 to qualify for an advisor. Whether they’re starting with $50 or $500, Selene AI delivers:

• Personalized Coaching – Tailored nudges, budgeting insights, and saving strategies designed to improve financial habits one step at a time.
• Wealth-Building Pathways – Clear, AI-driven recommendations that guide members from basic savings to diversified portfolios, no matter their starting point.
• Always-On Access – 24/7 guidance available in-app, eliminating the intimidation and exclusivity of traditional financial advisory services.

Multi-Asset Access Without Barriers

Selene AI democratizes investing by embedding access to:

• Stocks & ETFs – Fractional shares make it possible for every member to participate in equity markets.
• Crypto & Alternatives – Exposure to new asset classes once reserved for sophisticated investors.
• Futures & Options – For advanced members, the tools to expand beyond traditional savings and loans.

Lifestyle Engagement That Builds Loyalty

Financial inclusion isn’t just about accounts; it’s about experiences. Selene AI integrates rewards that make wealth-building tangible in everyday life:

• 1% Cash Back on Dining, Travel, and Entertainment – Encouraging engagement where members already spend.
• Gamified Progress Tracking – Helping members celebrate milestones like building an emergency fund or hitting investment goals.
• Community-First Programs – Credit unions can design reward campaigns that tie directly to member loyalty and local impact.

Data-Driven Member Retention

Every interaction with Selene AI generates insights into member needs, behaviors, and aspirations. Credit unions can leverage these insights to:

• Identify at-risk members before they churn to big brands.
• Offer proactive lending and savings opportunities.
• Strengthen the emotional bond between institution and member.

Closing the Helplessness Gap

Most importantly, Selene AI solves the helplessness problem. It transforms the credit union from a passive money-holder into an active partner in wealth-building. Members who once felt excluded or ignored now feel:

• Seen – Their small deposits matter.
• Capable – They have tools to take action immediately.
• Included – They belong to a financial institution that truly helps them grow.

With Selene AI, credit unions can finally compete with big brands on technology and experience while doubling down on their mission of inclusion. It is not just a tool — it is the bridge between the credit union legacy of community trust and the digital-first demands of the next generation.

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The Urgency of Now

Every quarter that passes, Apple gains deposits, Robinhood issues cards, and Coinbase onboards new investors. Each step cements habits that pull members away from credit unions permanently.

Financial inclusion is no longer just a mission statement — it is the competitive battleground of the next decade. With Selene AI, credit unions can deliver digital-first inclusion that keeps members loyal, engaged, and empowered to build wealth in the new economy.

The choice is clear: adapt and lead, or delay and disappear.

🔥 AlgoPear Pulse Bottom Line: Financial inclusion today means more than a checking account — it means giving every member access to wealth-building. Big brands are racing to own this space, but credit unions can still reclaim their founding mission with modern tools. With Selene AI, inclusion becomes not just possible — but scalable.

Click the link here 👉 https://form.typeform.com/to/OqORXCcr?typeform-source=www.algopear.com to speak with an AlgoPear Luminary to embed Selene AI in 60 days or less.

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