Ulster Federal Credit Union

What Ulster Federal Credit Union does

Ulster Federal Credit Union is a federally chartered, member-owned credit union founded in 1940 in Kingston, New York, serving Ulster County as the county's first credit union. The institution provides a full-service retail and small-business banking platform across five branches in Kingston and Saugerties, supported by online banking, a mobile banking app for iOS and Android, and a 24/7 telephone banking system (SmartLine). Membership eligibility is restricted to individuals who live, work, worship, or attend school in Ulster County, plus their families, making the geographic footprint the defining strategic boundary of the institution.

The product portfolio spans consumer and business deposit accounts (checking, savings, money market, share certificates, IRAs), Visa debit and credit cards (Classic at 11.95% APR, Platinum at 10.95% APR, and a secured variant), and a wide lending menu including home mortgages, home equity loans and HELOCs, auto loans, personal loans (including a 6.00% APR special up to $2,500), boat/RV and equipment financing, student loans, share-secured loans, energy efficiency loans, overdraft lines of credit, and commercial loans. Notably, the credit union extends its product surface through partnerships rather than proprietary build: home mortgages are originated through Owners Choice Funding, student loans through LendKey, insurance through TruStage and CUNA Mutual Group, and foreign currency through Currency Exchange International.

The business model is a classic cooperative credit union structure: net interest income from the lending portfolio (auto, mortgage, credit card, personal, home equity) is the primary revenue engine, supplemented by transaction fees (NSF, overdraft, wire transfers, safe deposit boxes, account research), interchange revenue from Visa-branded cards, and affiliate referral income from insurance distribution. The institution is regulated by the National Credit Union Administration (NCUA) with member deposits insured up to $250,000, is governed by a volunteer Board of Directors, and is led by President/CEO Stacey Warr alongside a C-suite including CFO Cheryl Hobart and COO Melissa Terpening. Marketing and member acquisition are executed through community sponsorships of 100+ local organizations, active social media presence across Facebook, Instagram, X, and TikTok, and a stated philosophy that 'People are Worth More than Money.'

Name

Ulster Federal Credit Union

Legal name

Ulster Federal Credit Union

Website

https://ulsfedcu.org

Company type

Private

Founded year

1940

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

11–50 employees

Short description

Ulster Federal Credit Union is a member-owned, federally chartered credit union founded in 1940 in Kingston, New York, providing consumer and small-business banking, lending, and digital services to residents of Ulster County.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Community Banking (Credit Union)

NAICS

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

SIC

Savings Institution, Federally Chartered (6035), Personal Credit Institutions (6141)

akta.pro primary industry

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

akta.pro secondary industries

Bank & Credit Union Personal Loans (Unsecured Installment) (FSAKAAAL), Secured Credit Cards (FSAKABAD)

Keywords

• Retail banking services
• Community credit union
• Consumer lending products
• Business banking solutions
• Mortgage and loan services

Headquarters

HQ city

Kingston

HQ country

United States

HQ region

North America

Offices5 records

Markets served

GTM type

B2B and B2C

Offering type

Services

Cost components

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

Revenue model

1. Interest Income from Loans: Primary revenue stream from interest charged on various loan products including auto loans, home mortgages, home equity loans, personal loans, credit cards, and business loans. Rates vary by product type and creditworthiness.
2. Account and Service Fees: Fees for various banking services including NSF fees ($35), overdraft protection ($35), wire transfers ($30 domestic, $40 foreign), safe deposit boxes ($50-$100/year), account research ($25/hour), and ATM fees.
3. Credit Card Transaction Fees: Interchange fees from credit and debit card transactions processed through Visa network.
4. Insurance Products Distribution: Referral fees from TruStage insurance products, GAP insurance, and Credit Life & Disability insurance offered through CUNA Mutual Group.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion2 records

Distribution channels4 records

Marketing channels5 records

Core offering

Ulster Federal Credit Union is a federally chartered, member-owned credit union that delivers retail and small-business banking, consumer and commercial lending, and digital banking services to residents of Ulster County, New York. Its core offerings span deposit accounts (checking, savings, money market, share certificates, IRAs), consumer loans (auto, personal, home mortgage, home equity, boat/RV, student), credit and debit cards on the Visa network, business banking and merchant card services, and member-benefit programs including insurance distribution and loyalty discounts.

Product overview

Ulster Federal Credit Union is a federally chartered credit union serving Ulster County, New York since 1940, offering a comprehensive suite of financial products and services. The core banking platform includes personal and business checking and savings accounts, Visa debit and credit cards (Classic, Platinum, and Secured variants), and a full range of lending products including home mortgages (via Owners Choice Funding partnership), home equity loans and HELOCs, auto loans, personal loans (including a 6.00% APR special), boat/RV loans, equipment loans, student loans (via LendKey partnership), and business loans. Digital banking services encompass online and mobile banking with bill pay, remote deposit capture, eStatements, and mobile wallet support for Apple, Google, and Samsung Pay. Ancillary services include insurance products through TruStage and CUNA Mutual Group, GAP protection, credit life and disability insurance, Visa gift cards, foreign currency purchasing, safe deposit boxes, notary services, and member benefit programs including loyalty discounts and military discounts. The credit union partners with CO-OP and multiple ATM networks for nationwide surcharge-free access, and CardNav by CO-OP for real-time debit card controls.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• Personal Checking Accounts

Quantifiable outcome

• Loan interest rate discounts up to 1.00% through Member Loyalty Program
• +2 more outcomes

Segments3 records

Ideal customer profiles3 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Integration15 records

Partnerships

Seven partnerships are on record, tiered core.

• LendKeycoreTechnology or IntegrationStudent loan partner providing access to private student loans for in-school students and student loan refinancing/consolidation for graduates. LendKey's platform connects members with community lenders offering competitive rates as low as 2.58% APR with auto-pay.
• CUNA Mutual GroupcoreTechnology or IntegrationInsurance partner offering Credit Life & Disability insurance on loans. Life Insurance: $0.60/$1,000 (Single) or $0.96/$1,000 (Joint). Disability: $1.73/$1,000 (Single) or $3.29/$1,000 (Joint). Total Benefit Maximums apply.
• TruStage Insurance ServicescoreTechnology or IntegrationInsurance services partner providing life, auto, health, and property coverage at competitive rates for Ulster FCU members.
• CO-OP Financial ServicescoreTechnology or IntegrationSurcharge-free ATM network partner providing access to thousands of ATMs nationwide. Also provides CardNav debit card control app for real-time card management and fraud prevention.
• CardNav by CO-OPcoreTechnology or IntegrationFree smartphone app for debit card security enabling card on/off controls, transaction location limits, merchant restrictions, spending limits, and real-time notifications. Integrated into Ulster FCU mobile banking app.
• Owners Choice FundingcoreTechnology or IntegrationPortfolio service partner for home mortgage loans. Provides online mortgage applications, pre-qualification decisions in 10 minutes, rate checking, closing cost estimates, and loan calculators through their platform.
• CUNA Mutual GroupcoreTechnology or IntegrationInsurance partner offering Credit Life & Disability insurance on loans. Helps protect family against unexpected events by making loan payments if member cannot.

Scale indicators4 records

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights5 records

Direct peers

• Mid-Hudson Valley Federal Credit Union: Federally chartered community credit union operating in the Hudson Valley region of New York, directly overlapping Ulster FCU's geography and offering a similar suite of consumer banking, lending, and business services to local members.
• Hudson Valley Credit Union: Large community credit union serving the Hudson Valley, including Ulster County. Same target market and community-credit-union value proposition, but at meaningfully larger scale than Ulster FCU.
• Ulster Savings Bank: Community bank headquartered in Ulster County, NY, providing nearly identical deposit, lending, and business banking products to Ulster FCU's market — the closest direct competitor in the same footprint.
• Bethpage Federal Credit Union: New York-based community credit union with similar field-of-membership-driven consumer and business product offering. Useful peer for benchmarking digital capabilities, product breadth, and community-credit-union economics at moderate scale.
• SEFCU / Broadview Federal Credit Union: New York State community credit union (recently merged) serving Capital Region and broader NY membership. Comparable community credit-union playbook with similar product breadth and partner-driven distribution model.
• Empower Federal Credit Union: Community-focused federal credit union serving members across multiple states with consumer and business products. Closely comparable member-owned, community-anchored credit-union model to Ulster FCU.

Regional players

• Bank of Greene County: Community bank in the greater Hudson Valley serving adjacent counties. Overlapping product set (consumer lending, deposits, business banking) for a partially overlapping but different geography.
• Community Bank, N.A. Mid-sized regional bank with Hudson Valley / Upstate NY branches offering consumer and commercial banking. Larger scale and broader footprint than Ulster FCU but directly competing for Ulster County deposit and loan relationships.

Broad incumbents

• KeyBank: Large regional bank with a meaningful branch presence across New York State including Ulster County. Competes head-on for deposits, mortgages, and consumer loans while offering a much broader product set and digital capabilities.

Others

• Owners Choice Funding: Mortgage partner that already white-labels home mortgage origination for Ulster FCU. Included as a relevant ecosystem participant and adjacent peer illustrating outsourced mortgage distribution in community credit unions.

Market position

Strengths4 records

Weaknesses4 records

Competitive moat4 records

Key risks1 record

Key highlights6 records

Customer concentration

• Xx.com/UlsterFCU
• Facebookfacebook.com/Ulster-Federal-Credit-Union-131652317076
• Instagraminstagram.com/ulsterfcu
• TikToktiktok.com/@ulsterfederalcreditunion

Compliance1 record

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles18 records

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 Ulster Federal Credit Union