A quick heads up (trigger warning!)
If you believe maintaining the status quo is a long-term survival strategy, or if you’re convinced digital assets are someone else’s problem, this article might make you uncomfortable. Unfortunately, the future of money (digital dollars, stablecoins, Bitcoin, etc.) doesn’t care about your comfort level. Buckle up.
The pool of money you’re ignoring is bigger than your entire industry
Here’s a data point that belongs in every boardroom PowerPoint this year: the market cap of Bitcoin plus Ethereum is already greater than the balance sheets of ALL U.S. credit unions combined.
Let that sink in.
You’re in the deposit and lending business, right? So, when your members move billions of dollars into digital assets—often to centralized, unregulated, offshore platforms—every one of those dollars is a dollar you can’t lend back into your community. Every one of those transactions weakens your relevance as a trusted financial partner, and as an institution.
This isn’t speculation about the future. It’s been happening for over a decade. And if your digital asset strategy is still “wait and see,” you’re not waiting on clarity—you’re more like a record store at the advent of the iPod.
Member trust (and your balance sheet) is at risk
This goes way beyond Bitcoin. The bigger risk is that your members—especially younger ones—are slowly learning they don’t actually need you for their financial lives. Every time they use a crypto exchange, a neobank, or an ‘everything app’, your value proposition shrinks a little more.
When those members want to explore digital assets, they aren’t calling their credit union for guidance. They’re clicking on the first flashy app they see on TikTok. And many of those platforms offer exactly zero consumer protection—no oversight, no insurance, and no concern for local economies.
This isn’t hypothetical; we’ve all seen the headlines. Fraud, hacks, frozen accounts. Every time a member loses money in these environments, it’s a trust wound your institution could have prevented if you had offered them a safer alternative.
Shiny object syndrome won’t save you
If your strategy is to bolt on a third-party ‘crypto solution’ and call it innovation, I have bad news. Regardless of what the last vendor rep told you over a steak dinner, there’s no amount of shiny user interface or slick marketing that can make up for the fundamental security gap of centralized custody in co-mingled wallets held outside your core.
Core-integrated digital asset custody isn’t just a best practice—it’s the only responsible option. Credit unions exist to safeguard member assets—and in 2025, that includes dollars and digital assets. The moment you outsource that responsibility to a bolt-on vendor, you introduce risk you can’t fully control.
Forward-thinking credit unions—like St. Cloud Financial Credit Union—already know this. They've built a core-centric bridge between TradFi and DeFi, giving members the ability to securely custody, transact with, and even borrow against digital assets—all from inside the regulated banking core their members already trust. No silos. No gimmicks. Just safe, responsible custody for the next generation of assets.
The regulatory Catch-22
This is where I need to be blunt (I know, it’s a real stretch). I hear a lot of credit union executives say, “We’re just waiting for regulatory clarity.” And while I understand the sentiment, waiting doesn’t work if you’re not actively pushing for that clarity.
Right now, outdated rules, or worse, lack or guidance altogether, block credit unions from offering the digital asset services members want and need. That’s not because credit unions lack the technology or the expertise. It’s because regulators have been extremely slow to acknowledge the realities of modern finance.
Here’s the hard truth: regulators won’t move unless you make them move. If you’re not on the phone with your local regulator, trade association, and your congressperson, demanding modernized guidance—you’re passively accepting your own irrelevance.
Your next three calls
When you finish this article, I’m asking you to do three things:
- Call your local regulator and explain why allowing credit unions to offer safe, regulated digital asset services protects consumers and keeps local deposits working in the community.
- Call your trade association and ask them what they’re actively doing to push for digital asset clarity in 2025.
- Call your district representative and ask them, point blank, what their plan is to help credit unions compete in a digital asset economy—and how they plan to ensure you aren’t shut out by big banks and fintechs.
And when they ask you for details, you can tell them the technology already exists, the solutions are already built, and the only thing missing is permission to move forward responsibly.
Bottom line: The status quo is not a ‘safe’ option
If you believe doing nothing is the safest move, here’s a little math for you: the credit union industry has already shrunk by nearly 60% over the last 30 years.
Every time a credit union disappears, an angel gets its wings. Wait, that can’t be right…
Oh, I remember; when a credit union disappears, members—and their deposits—are often forced into unwanted relationships with a large, faceless, non-local institutions.
That’s not the future you want. But it’s exactly where this road leads if we don’t act—together—to demand modern guidance so we can continue to build the infrastructure needed to support the future of money.
The future of money will happen with or without credit unions. Whether you’re an integral part of the story, or merely a footnote in history is entirely up to you.
The good news? You’ve got backup. The technology is ready. Strategic partners like DaLand have been working on innovative products in this space for years and we’re here to collaborate when you’re ready. But none of it matters if you don’t step up and make your voice heard.
