Amplify Credit Union will celebrate 55 years of serving the Austin area on Aug. 27.
The credit union's first location opened in 1967. In recent years, it has shifted to provide customers with banking services free of fees—such as overdraft, wire transfer and account maintenance fees—forgoing $2 million in annual revenue, according to a release from the company.
Amplify CEO Kendall Garrison, who took over shortly before the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic, said the idea came to him during a meeting as an opportunity to give back to customers.
"I sort of just threw out the idea. Our members don't really appreciate these, so why don't we just stop charging them," Garrison said in an interview with Community Impact Newspaper. "Everyone looked at me like I had completely lost my mind. Over the course of time, we came to realize that this is actually something we could do. This would be a member giveback unlike any other traditional financial institution in the country."
