Brent Lister, President & CEO, First Florida Credit Union
Invest: spoke with Brent Lister, president and CEO of First Florida Credit Union, about the credit union’s numerous recent awards and recognitions, the impact of inflation on affordability and livability, and why its focus as an institution is on the financial wellness of its customers.
What is the overall impact and contribution of First Florida Credit Union in the Jacksonville region?
We always try to impact the communities in which we serve and to help our members to achieve financial success. Over the last 12 months, we have continued to focus on expansion within Jacksonville, with a lot of new enhancements from an online banking standpoint and new products. We are also giving back to the community through our activities. This year, we were recognized as one of the best companies to work for in Florida. We also cinched multiple awards at the 2023 Best of Bold City Community’s Choice Awards, hosted by jacksonville.com. With the support of the Jacksonville community, we edged out competitors to secure the “Best Bank” spot in the finance category. That was an exciting recognition because we want our employees to feel engaged and encouraged, and to understand their roles in the company. I was also recognized as the best boss in Jacksonville, because of some loyal voters. Those are nice community recognitions, which add value to the organization, and it let our members know that we are a trusted financial institution. We were also recognized by our trade association as the Florida Credit Union of the Year for our asset size, based on factors that include financial strength and performance, new and improved services to members, financial literacy/education efforts, community involvement, and more.
What is your overview of the banking sector in the Jacksonville region?
We are fortunate to be in the North Florida region and to see that inflation and other economic troubles haven’t impacted Jacksonville as much as other parts of the country. However, the inflated prices of groceries, rent, and insurance are impacting our members and the citizens of Jacksonville. Many prices have substantially increased for our residents, and while they can sustain that in the short term, it does have a long-term financial impact in terms of affordability and livability. Anytime we see population growth, it is positive, and we have seen a lot. The challenge is that it increases the cost of living, with an increased demand for housing. Rents have gone up quite a bit, and that is a challenge for consumers or young professionals. Additionally, the city needs capital to fund the necessary infrastructure to meet the needs of these new residents.
The city is fortunate to have many big initiatives planned, including the new stadium for the Jaguars. Business leaders are supportive of this, and the benefit of having an NFL team as well as a stadium that can be rented out for other events is important. Development of the downtown area with beautiful waterways will help move this great city forward, but the economic challenges for many consumers and affordability are not waning.
What services are seeing the highest demand from your clients?
As a consumer-based institution, we work for families, and they are buying cars and houses. We need to work with our members to help them find success by refinancing or working with them on payments if they are struggling, as well as helping them reduce their debt-to-income ratio so they have better cash flow. Anything we can do to help reduce costs is good, and we can help them make budgets to better manage their spending. Many people don’t have ways to raise their income, but there are opportunities to save money. We want to emphasize financial wellness. We want to provide products and services that are accessible and add value to our members.
How are you incorporating technology to create efficiencies in your daily operations, or to improve client services?
We have large initiatives on a couple of fronts. On safety and information security, our industry is seeing a lot of consumer fraud, with bad actors and hackers that use ransomware. We want the best tools to protect our members’ privacy, including new AI fraud tools that analyze how people use their online banking services. These tools can identify when people log on from an unknown device or when their usual behavior changes. We also have software that detects credit card or account fraud. Also, we are in the process of implementing a faster online account opening platform that will require fewer interactions with staff members. Ease and convenience are an emphasis on the technology side, and customers want it 24/7 online or on mobile. Much of our initiatives and budget involve technology, privacy, and protecting our customers from fraud. We try to differentiate ourselves by utilizing and promoting these tools, including our recent adoption of the payment app Zelle®. At the end of the day, we want to protect our members’ money.
What is your outlook for First Florida in the near term, and what are your key priorities moving forward?
Our outlook is positive. We understand the challenges of our consumers and how that can impact us in a high-interest rate environment. We earn revenue by loaning money out; However, with the cost of funds skyrocketing, our margins are squeezed. We still have a great mission at our credit union to enrich people every day. By staying focused on our mission, we will continue to add value, differentiate ourselves, grow, and thrive. We remain forward-thinking, and we try to keep our eyes forward. We will continue to grow and thrive, with intended purposes for our interactions.
The economy in Florida is business-rich and positive. The weather and tax structure are great, so as long as we have new people coming in, we will continue to succeed. Overall, we are doing well. There are challenges out there, but we are tightening our spending a bit so we can continue focusing on growth and new business opportunities.
