Telco Credit Union

What Telco Credit Union does

Telco Credit Union is a not-for-profit, member-owned financial cooperative headquartered in Tarboro, North Carolina, founded in 1941 by 19 employees of Carolina Telephone. The institution serves over 10,000 members across Eastern North Carolina through two physical branch locations (Tarboro and Greenville) and a growing set of digital channels. As a full-service community credit union, Telco operates under a federally insured charter regulated by the National Credit Union Administration (NCUA), with member deposits protected up to $250,000 per account holder via the National Credit Union Share Insurance Fund. Membership eligibility is anchored in Selected Employee Group (SEG) employer relationships spanning over 100 organizations including Sprint, AT&T, and Edgecombe Community College.

The credit union's product portfolio is comprehensive for a community institution, spanning consumer deposit products (Share Draft Checking, Kasasa Cash Back Checking, Share Savings, Kasasa Saver, Money Markets, 6-60 month Certificates of Deposit, Traditional and Roth IRAs) and consumer lending (Auto Loans starting at 5.70% APR, fixed and adjustable-rate Mortgages, Home Equity Loans at 6.50% APR, unsecured Signature Loans at 7.50% APR, Credit Builder Loans for thin-file borrowers, and VISA credit cards from 9.99% APR). Add-on products include Trustage Insurance (credit life, credit disability, GAP) and Bounce Shield overdraft protection. Distribution is multi-channel: two physical branches, drive-thru Interactive Teller Machines (TelcoExpress) with extended weekday and Saturday hours, a third-party mobile banking application with remote deposit capture, an NS3web-hosted online banking platform, an ATM network, and TAPS telephone banking. There is no proprietary technology development; the institution operates on standard credit union core banking and digital channel infrastructure.

Telco's revenue model follows the standard credit union net interest income framework, with interest income from the loan portfolio as the primary driver, supplemented by deposit account fees, transaction fees, and commissions from insurance product distribution. As a not-for-profit cooperative, surpluses are returned to members through higher savings dividends and lower loan rates rather than distributed to external shareholders. Customer acquisition is primarily relationship-driven through SEG employer partnerships, community presence in Tarboro, Rocky Mount, and Greenville, and educational content marketing on the credit union's website and social channels. The institution has 11-50 employees and no disclosed parent company, subsidiaries, M&A activity, or external funding.

Name

Telco Credit Union

Legal name

Telco Credit Union

Website

https://telcu.com

Company type

Private

Founded year

1941

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

11–50 employees

Short description

Telco Credit Union is a not-for-profit, member-owned financial cooperative founded in 1941 in Tarboro, North Carolina, serving over 10,000 members in Eastern North Carolina. It provides standard retail banking products — deposits, consumer loans, mortgages, credit cards, and insurance — through two branches and digital channels, with deposits federally insured by the NCUA.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Community Banking

NAICS

Credit Unions (52213), Credit Unions (522130)

SIC

Savings Institutions, Not Federally Chartered (6036)

akta.pro primary industry

Employer/Occupational Credit Unions (FSABAEAB)

Keywords

• Retail banking
• Consumer lending
• Community credit union
• Deposit services
• Member-owned banking

Headquarters

HQ city

Tarboro

HQ country

United States

HQ region

North America

Offices2 records

Markets served

GTM type

B2C

Offering type

Services

Cost components

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

Revenue model

1. Interest Income from Loans: The primary revenue stream is interest income from various loan products including auto loans, mortgages, home equity loans, signature loans, credit builder loans, and VISA credit cards. As a not-for-profit credit union, profits are returned to members through higher dividends on savings and lower interest rates on loans.
2. Deposit Account Fees and Services: Revenue generated from checking and savings account services, money market accounts, certificates of deposit (CDs), and IRA accounts. Account maintenance fees and transaction fees contribute to revenue.
3. Insurance Products: Sale of insurance products including Credit Life and Disability Insurance (MEMBER'S CHOICE), GAP (Guaranteed Asset Protection) insurance, and Trustage Insurance offerings.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels5 records

Marketing channels6 records

Core offering

Telco Credit Union is a not-for-profit, member-owned credit union that provides consumer and small-business banking products including checking accounts, savings accounts, certificates of deposit, consumer loans (auto, personal, mortgage), and credit cards. It serves members in Eastern North Carolina, with its headquarters in Tarboro, NC, and was founded in 1941. Distribution is through physical branches, online and mobile banking, ATMs, and telephone banking.

Product overview

Telco Credit Union is a full-service not-for-profit financial institution offering a comprehensive suite of banking products and services. The core offerings include checking and savings accounts (Share Draft Checking, Kasasa Checking, Share Savings, Kasasa Saver), certificate deposits (CDs with terms from 6-60 months), IRA accounts (Traditional and Roth), money market accounts, and various loan products (Auto Loans, Mortgages, Signature Loans, Credit Builder Loans, Home Equity Loans, VISA Credit Cards). Add-on financial protection products include Trustage Insurance (credit life, disability, GAP) and Bounce Shield overdraft protection. Digital banking is supported through Online Banking, Mobile Banking App, TelcoExpress Interactive Teller Machines, Remote Deposit Capture, Direct Deposit, and Automatic Payments. The institution serves over 10,000 members in Eastern North Carolina, returning profits to members through higher dividends on savings and lower interest rates on loans.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• Checking Accounts
• Savings Accounts
• Certificates of Deposit (CDs)
• Consumer Loans
• Mortgage Loans
• Credit Cards
• Online and Mobile Banking
• ATM Access
• Telephone Banking

Segments4 records

Ideal customer profiles1 record

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Partnerships

One partnership is on record.

• Trustage InsuranceminorOthersTrustage Insurance is offered as a product partnership for insurance needs. This appears to be a third-party insurance provider whose products are offered to Telco Credit Union members.

Scale indicators3 records

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights4 records

Regional players

• First Carolina Community Bank: Eastern North Carolina-based community bank serving the same Tarboro/Rocky Mount/Greenville region as Telco. Comparable to Telco as a small, locally focused deposit and lending institution operating in the same Eastern NC geography and competing for the same retail and small business customers.

Direct peers

• United Federal Credit Union: Community credit union with employer-anchored membership and a broad footprint offering consumer and small business banking, mortgages, and digital services. Comparable to Telco as a member-owned credit union with a similar SEG-style membership model and full-service personal banking catalog.
• Heritage Trust Federal Credit Union: South Carolina-based community credit union serving members across the Lowcountry with personal banking, lending, mortgages, and digital channels. Comparable to Telco as a small-to-mid-size community credit union operating a multi-branch, multi-segment retail banking franchise.
• Langley Federal Credit Union: Virginia-based community credit union with employer-anchored membership and a full suite of consumer banking, lending, and digital products. Comparable to Telco as a community, employer-originated credit union operating a multi-branch network with similar deposit, loan, and digital banking offerings.
• Local Government Federal Credit Union: North Carolina-headquartered credit union originally serving local government employees, now offering community-wide membership. Closely comparable to Telco as a North Carolina, employer-originated credit union that has expanded to broader community membership with a similar full-service product line.
• Coastal Credit Union: North Carolina community credit union headquartered in Raleigh offering full-service checking, savings, lending, mortgages, and digital banking across the Triangle region. Closely comparable to Telco as a NC-based, member-owned cooperative serving consumers, students, and small businesses with similar product breadth.
• Self-Help Credit Union: North Carolina-based community development credit union serving underbanked and low-to-moderate income members across the Southeast with deposit, lending, and credit-building products. Comparable to Telco as a NC credit union serving community members, including those seeking credit-builder and small-dollar loan products.
• Truliant Federal Credit Union: North Carolina-headquartered community credit union serving members across NC, SC, and VA with checking, lending, mortgages, and business banking. Directly comparable to Telco as a multi-branch, multi-state credit union with similar SEG-based membership growth and a comparable full-service product catalog.
• Allegacy Federal Credit Union: North Carolina community credit union based in Winston-Salem offering personal and business banking, mortgages, and wealth services to members across the Piedmont Triad and beyond. Comparable to Telco as a NC member-owned cooperative with a full-service product set and similar community/employer-driven acquisition model.

Broad incumbents

• State Employees' Credit Union (SECU): North Carolina's largest credit union, member-owned and employer-affiliated (state employees), operating statewide with a full suite of deposit, lending, and insurance products. Directly comparable to Telco as a North Carolina-based, employer-anchored cooperative serving retail and small business members, but operates at vastly greater scale.

Market position

Strengths4 records

Weaknesses4 records

Competitive moat4 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• Facebookfacebook.com/Telco-Credit-Union-116272331941
• Instagraminstagram.com/telcocu

Compliance1 record

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 Telco Credit Union