Valley First

What Valley First does

Valley First is a divisional trade name of Tru Cooperative Bank (formerly First West Credit Union), a member-owned Canadian cooperative financial institution headquartered in Penticton, British Columbia, and operating exclusively within that province. It provides full-service personal and business banking to individual consumers and small-to-medium enterprises, including chequing and savings accounts, residential and commercial mortgages, personal and business loans, lines of credit, credit cards, registered investment plans (TFSA, RRSP, RESP, FHSA, RIF), GICs, wealth management, and business payment/cash-management services (automated funds transfer, Payline international wire, point-of-sale, payroll). The broader Tru Cooperative Bank collective reports $20.8B in assets, 291,000 members, and 45 branches across BC, operating alongside sister brands Island Savings, Envision Financial, and Enderby & District Financial.

The company delivers products through a multi-channel model combining 45 physical branches, a digital-first online banking platform (secure.valleyfirst.com), iOS/Android mobile apps, telephone banking, and advisor appointments booked via coconutcalendar.com. Its technology stack is built on a core banking infrastructure integrated with the parent cooperative, augmented by member-facing features including the Finley digital assistant, BIGChange round-up savings, ClickSWITCH account migration, two-step verification, and an online membership application with mobile identity verification against government-issued photo ID. Online account opening can be completed in roughly five minutes.

Revenue mechanics are those of a traditional credit union: net interest income from the spread between lending and deposit rates, account and service fees, credit-card interchange/interest (via a Collabria Financial partnership), and wealth-management fees and commissions. Go-to-market blends direct-to-consumer digital acquisition with a sales-led motion through branch advisors for complex products, supported by a Referral Perks program paying $100 per successful referral. Account opening requires a $5 Membership Equity Share, reflecting the cooperative ownership structure in which members rather than external shareholders own the institution.

Name

Valley First

Legal name

Tru Cooperative Bank

Website

https://valleyfirst.com

Company type

Private

Founded year

1945

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

251–500 employees

Short description

Valley First is a British Columbia-based divisional brand of member-owned Tru Cooperative Bank (formerly First West Credit Union), providing full-service personal and business banking—accounts, mortgages, loans, credit cards, and investments—to consumers and SMEs across the province.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Retail Banking

NAICS

Credit Unions (52213), Credit Unions (522130), Depository Credit Intermediation (5221), Credit Card Issuing (522210)

SIC

Personal Credit Institutions (6141)

akta.pro primary industry

Community Credit Unions (Retail/Consumer Focus) (FSABAEAA)

akta.pro secondary industries

Cooperative Banks (Member-Owned Commercial/Retail) (FSABAEAF), Credit Cards & Revolving Credit (FSABAAAC)

Keywords

• Retail banking services
• Credit union services
• Mortgage lending
• Business banking
• Wealth management

Headquarters

HQ city

Penticton

HQ country

Canada

HQ region

North America

Offices2 records

Markets served

GTM type

B2B and B2C

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Infrastructure, Technology or R&D, Marketing or Sales

Revenue model

1. Net Interest Income: Traditional credit union revenue from the spread between interest earned on loans (mortgages, personal loans, business loans, credit cards) and interest paid on deposits (chequing, savings, GICs). Core banking revenue stream.
2. Account and Service Fees: Fees charged for account maintenance, transactions, overdraft protection, wire transfers, and other banking services. Published fee schedules available for personal and business accounts.
3. Credit Card Revenue: Interchange fees, annual fees, and interest charges on credit card balances. Credit cards offered through Collabria Financial partnership.
4. Wealth Management and Investment Products: Fees and commissions from investment products including GICs, mutual funds, registered plans (TFSA, RRSP, RESP, FHSA, RIF), and wealth management services.
5. Business Banking Services: Revenue from business chequing and savings accounts, business loans, lines of credit, payroll services, point-of-sale services, and automated/international funds transfer (Payline).

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion2 records

Distribution channels5 records

Marketing channels5 records

Core offering

Valley First is a Canadian credit union division delivering retail and small-business banking services through 45 branches across British Columbia. It offers personal chequing/savings accounts, mortgages, loans, lines of credit, GICs, registered investment plans (TFSA, RRSP, RESP, FHSA, RIF), credit cards via Collabria, business banking accounts and loans, and business payment/cash management solutions. Services are accessed through branch, online, mobile, telephone, and advisor-appointment channels for 291,000 members.

Product overview

Valley First is a division of Tru Cooperative Bank, a Canadian cooperative financial institution offering personal and business banking services across British Columbia. The product portfolio is structured as a full-service financial services platform comprising core banking products (chequing and savings accounts, mortgages, loans, lines of credit), registered investment accounts (GICs, TFSAs, RRSPs, RESPs, FHSAs, RIFs), credit cards through the Collabria partnership, business banking services, and digital banking channels (online and mobile app). The offering integrates supplementary features including the Finley digital assistant, BIGChange round-up savings, ClickSWITCH account migration, referral rewards, and a suite of financial planning calculators. Business customers have access to payment and cash management services including automated funds transfer, international wire transfers, point-of-sale, and payroll services. Valley First operates 45 branch locations serving 291,000 members.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Brands

• Referral Perks®: Member referral program offering $100 reward to both referrer and referred member for successful referrals.
• BIGChange®
• ClickSWITCH®
• winwin® Financial Services
• winwin EarthLink™

Products and services

• Online Banking Web-based digital banking platform that enables members to access accounts, transfer funds, pay bills, view statements, and manage personal finances through a browser.
• Mobile Banking Application Native mobile banking application for iOS and Android that supports account access, mobile cheque deposit, and on-the-go banking transactions for personal members.
• Personal Chequing Accounts Day-to-day personal chequing accounts available in multiple tiers with unlimited transactions and integration with Valley First digital banking tools.
• Personal Savings Accounts Personal savings account products that help members grow their savings with competitive interest rates and flexible access options.
• Credit Cards (Valley First / Collabria) Valley First-branded credit card portfolio issued in partnership with Collabria, including Cash Back World Elite Mastercard, Valley First World Mastercard, US Dollar cards, and rewards-based products managed via the cardwiseonline.ca portal.
• Personal Mortgages Residential mortgage products including fixed and variable rate options, first-time home buyer programs, renewals, refinances, and home equity utilization.
• Personal Loans Unsecured personal loan products including RRSP loans for debt consolidation, major purchases, and unexpected expenses.
• Personal Lines of Credit Revolving personal credit products including personal lines of credit, home equity lines of credit (HELOC), student lines of credit, and overdraft protection.
• GICs (Guaranteed Investment Certificates) Guaranteed investment certificate products providing secure, fixed-rate returns across multiple term lengths, including the winwin Financial Services and winwin EarthLink environmentally-linked GIC lines.
• Registered Plans (TFSA, RRSP, RESP, FHSA, RIF) Registered tax-advantaged savings accounts including Tax-Free Savings Accounts (TFSA), Registered Retirement Savings Plans (RRSP), Registered Education Savings Plans (RESP), First Home Savings Accounts (FHSA), and Registered Retirement Income Funds (RIF).
• Wealth Management & Financial Planning Comprehensive wealth management and financial planning services including investment advisory, retirement planning, and direct investing options.
• Business Banking Full business banking services including business chequing and savings accounts, business online and mobile banking, remote cheque deposit, business credit cards, and commercial mortgages for small and medium-sized businesses.
• Business Loans & Lines of Credit Commercial lending products including business term loans and business lines of credit to support operational financing and growth capital needs.
• Business Payment & Cash Management Services Business payment and cash management solutions including automated funds transfer (AFT), international wire transfers via Payline, point-of-sale services, and payroll services for small and medium businesses.

Segments4 records

Ideal customer profiles2 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Feature5 records

Partnerships

Three partnerships are on record, tiered core and minor.

• Collabria FinancialcoreTechnology or IntegrationCollabria Financial provides credit card processing and issuance services for Valley First-branded credit cards including Cash Back World Elite Mastercard, Valley First World Mastercard, and other credit card products. Includes online account management portal (cardwiseonline.ca), rewards calculator, and card picker tools.
• ICE (International Currency Exchange)minorChannel Partner/ Reseller/ DistributorICE's Click & Collect service enables customers to order foreign currency online and pick up at a convenient location. Valley First branches offer USD currency directly.
• Third-Party Identity Verification ProvidercoreTechnology or IntegrationThird-party authentication service used during the online membership application process to verify applicant identity through facial recognition matching government-issued photo ID (e.g., BC Driver's License).

Scale indicators5 records

Recent moves5 records

Expansion highlights4 records

Direct peers

• Meridian Credit Union: Ontario-based member-owned credit union offering personal banking, mortgages, wealth, and business banking. Comparable asset scale, product breadth, and digital investment trajectory make it a strong peer for benchmarking growth and digital transformation.
• Vancity Credit Union: British Columbia's largest credit union, also member-owned cooperative offering personal and business banking, mortgages, and wealth services across the Lower Mainland. Most direct geographic and structural peer to Valley First given overlapping BC footprint and similar member-owned model.
• BlueShore Financial: BC-based financial cooperative offering premium banking, mortgages, and wealth management across Metro Vancouver and the Sea-to-Sky corridor. Comparable member-owned model and full-service personal/business banking make it a relevant peer in the BC market.
• Coast Capital Savings: BC-based credit union serving members across the Lower Mainland, Vancouver Island, and Fraser Valley with comparable personal and business banking products. Similar scale and cooperative structure make it a direct competitor for BC consumer and SMB banking relationships.

Broad incumbents

• Desjardins Group: Largest cooperative financial group in Canada, headquartered in Quebec with nationwide operations including caisses populaires and credit unions. Comparable cooperative ownership model and full-service retail/business banking, but operates at much larger scale and primarily in Eastern Canada.
• Tangerine Bank: Direct bank subsidiary of Scotiabank offering digital-first personal banking across Canada. Represents the digital-native competitive threat that Valley First is upgrading its digital platform to counter; broader incumbent rather than direct peer.

Emerging players

• Neo Financial: Canadian fintech offering digital banking, credit cards, and savings products directly competing for younger, digitally native consumers. Not a credit union but a key emerging competitor in the same product categories across the same geographies.

Regional players

• Servus Credit Union: Alberta-based member-owned credit union with full-service retail and business banking across the province. Comparable cooperative structure and product suite, but operates in a different province and does not directly compete in BC.
• First Nations Financial Authority / First Nations Credit Union: Network of Indigenous-owned credit unions in Western Canada offering community-based retail banking. Operates in overlapping BC geographies with similar cooperative ownership structure, serving a distinct but adjacent member base.
• Alterna Bank (Alterna Savings): Ontario-based credit union offering personal and business banking, mortgages, and digital banking products. Member-owned cooperative with comparable scale and digital investment profile; serves a different geography than Valley First.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat5 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• Facebookfacebook.com/valley.first
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/valley-first-a-division-of-first-west-credit-union
• Instagraminstagram.com/valleyfirst
• Xx.com/Valley_First

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about Valley First