Throughout his three decades in financial services, John Ainsworth has relied on the same operating principle when developing technology solutions.

“If we start with the voice of the member and follow that, we'll always have a high percentage of success,” he tells the CUNA News Podcast.

Ainsworth pledges to follow that road map in his new role as president/CEO of CULedger, a credit union industry initiative for developing innovative applications of distributed ledger technology.

A life-long technology junkie, Ainsworth's resume includes executive positions at Visa and most recently MasterCard, where he worked substantially with credit unions.

Ainsworth believes credit unions stand at a “critical inflection point” where rapid changes in financial services technology can either draw them closer to members or disintermediate them.

“For me, this is a chance to provide a unique opportunity that really could pull the credit union industry together again, to make sure they stay relevant in the next digital wave that's coming,” he says.

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