For credit union and CDFI boards
Legacy stack or modern platform: an honest comparison
A practical guide for credit union and CDFI boards weighing up their options.
If your back-office system runs on a server in your office, or you reach it through a Citrix-style remote desktop, you're not alone. A significant portion of UK credit unions and CDFIs are still on platforms built for a different era, and most of them are now asking the same question: when do we move, and to what?
This page lays out the practical differences between the way most UK credit unions currently run their technology, and the way Soar is built. We've tried to be fair. We've also tried to be specific, because vague comparisons help nobody make a real decision.
Track record
Nine full migrations completed. Curtains, Focus, Abacus, Sentinel, Street and Progress, plus one from spreadsheets. The path is well-trodden.
01
How it’s deployed
| Capability | Legacy stack | Soar |
|---|---|---|
| Where it runs | Server in your office, or accessed via a Citrix-style remote desktop | Cloud-native, runs in any modern browser |
| What you maintain | Local servers, backups, OS updates, security patches | Nothing. We handle infrastructure end to end. |
| Disaster recovery | Your responsibility, often through a third party | Multi-AZ on AWS, included as standard |
| Access from home | Often requires VPN setup and IT support | Just log in to a browser |
Where it runs
Legacy stack
Server in your office, or accessed via a Citrix-style remote desktop
Soar
Cloud-native, runs in any modern browser
What you maintain
Legacy stack
Local servers, backups, OS updates, security patches
Soar
Nothing. We handle infrastructure end to end.
Disaster recovery
Legacy stack
Your responsibility, often through a third party
Soar
Multi-AZ on AWS, included as standard
Access from home
Legacy stack
Often requires VPN setup and IT support
Soar
Just log in to a browser
The cloud-native distinction matters more than it sounds. It changes who’s responsible when something breaks at 9pm on a Sunday, and it changes how quickly you can onboard a new staff member or open a new branch.
02
What it covers
| Capability | Legacy stack | Soar |
|---|---|---|
| Core back office | Yes | Yes |
| Member portal | Often a separate vendor and contract | Included |
| Mobile app | Often a separate vendor, often a third-party logo | Included, branded as yours |
| Direct debit collections | Separate provider, separate integration | Included via PayPoint partnership |
| Credit checks and CAIS | Separate Experian or Equifax contract | Included via our Experian partnership |
| Document generation | Often manual, or a separate add-on | Included |
| Open banking | Rarely available | Included via Atto partnership |
| Regulatory reporting | Often manual extracts and spreadsheets | Built in (F4AF, PRA, FCA, Bank of England) |
| Website | Separate web agency | Included free for credit unions |
| Getting your data out | Often uncooperative; no documentation, no clean export | Proven migration scripts for the major UK legacy systems |
Core back office
Legacy stack
Yes
Soar
Yes
Member portal
Legacy stack
Often a separate vendor and contract
Soar
Included
Mobile app
Legacy stack
Often a separate vendor, often a third-party logo
Soar
Included, branded as yours
Direct debit collections
Legacy stack
Separate provider, separate integration
Soar
Included via PayPoint partnership
Credit checks and CAIS
Legacy stack
Separate Experian or Equifax contract
Soar
Included via our Experian partnership
Document generation
Legacy stack
Often manual, or a separate add-on
Soar
Included
Open banking
Legacy stack
Rarely available
Soar
Included via Atto partnership
Regulatory reporting
Legacy stack
Often manual extracts and spreadsheets
Soar
Built in (F4AF, PRA, FCA, Bank of England)
Website
Legacy stack
Separate web agency
Soar
Included free for credit unions
Getting your data out
Legacy stack
Often uncooperative; no documentation, no clean export
Soar
Proven migration scripts for the major UK legacy systems
The total-cost picture often surprises boards. When you add up the legacy back office plus the portal vendor plus the app vendor plus the credit bureau contract plus the document tool plus the website agency, the numbers tend to land in the same place as Soar, or higher.
03
How it changes over time
| Capability | Legacy stack | Soar |
|---|---|---|
| New features | Charged as upgrades, modules or separate contracts | Released to every client, included in the licence |
| Roadmap influence | Limited | Direct. Every feature we build started as a client conversation. |
| Version drift | Different clients on different versions | Every client on the same current version |
| Vendor consolidation risk | Real, and increasing across the sector | Self-funded, profitable, founder-led, no external investors |
New features
Legacy stack
Charged as upgrades, modules or separate contracts
Soar
Released to every client, included in the licence
Roadmap influence
Legacy stack
Limited
Soar
Direct. Every feature we build started as a client conversation.
Version drift
Legacy stack
Different clients on different versions
Soar
Every client on the same current version
Vendor consolidation risk
Legacy stack
Real, and increasing across the sector
Soar
Self-funded, profitable, founder-led, no external investors
This is where the wider sector context matters. When a software vendor changes hands, and several have, recently, your roadmap, your support team, your contract terms and your pricing model all become someone else’s decision. The right question for any board to ask is simple: if our provider was acquired tomorrow, how would we know whether the new owners’ priorities still align with ours? We’ve watched several waves of consolidation go through this sector, and we’ve built Soar deliberately to be outside that pattern. Self-funded, profitable, founder-led, no external investors.
04
What members see
| Capability | Legacy stack | Soar |
|---|---|---|
| Real-time balances | Often batch-updated overnight | Real-time |
| Loan applications | Often paper or PDF forms | Online, mobile, with pre-filled member data |
| Statements | Posted, or PDF on request | Self-service in the app and portal |
| Push notifications | Not available | Included |
| Biometric login | Not available | Included |
| Branding | Often the vendor’s, with your logo | Yours, end to end |
Real-time balances
Legacy stack
Often batch-updated overnight
Soar
Real-time
Loan applications
Legacy stack
Often paper or PDF forms
Soar
Online, mobile, with pre-filled member data
Statements
Legacy stack
Posted, or PDF on request
Soar
Self-service in the app and portal
Push notifications
Legacy stack
Not available
Soar
Included
Biometric login
Legacy stack
Not available
Soar
Included
Branding
Legacy stack
Often the vendor’s, with your logo
Soar
Yours, end to end
Members don’t usually ask for a “modern platform.” They ask why their bank app does something theirs doesn’t. The features above are what closes that gap.
05
What the team sees
| Capability | Legacy stack | Soar |
|---|---|---|
| Number of systems to log into | Often six or more | One |
| New starter onboarding | Days of training across multiple systems | Hours |
| Reporting | Manual extracts to Excel | Built-in dashboards plus exports |
| Working from home | Requires VPN and IT support | Browser login |
| Support | Multiple vendor relationships | One UK-based team |
Number of systems to log into
Legacy stack
Often six or more
Soar
One
New starter onboarding
Legacy stack
Days of training across multiple systems
Soar
Hours
Reporting
Legacy stack
Manual extracts to Excel
Soar
Built-in dashboards plus exports
Working from home
Legacy stack
Requires VPN and IT support
Soar
Browser login
Support
Legacy stack
Multiple vendor relationships
Soar
One UK-based team
Staff time is the most under-counted cost of legacy systems. When a single member query requires checking three systems and a spreadsheet, every interaction takes longer than it should.
Proof
A credit union that's already done it
NEFirst Credit Union came off a legacy back-office stack onto Soar in 2022. In 2025, they merged with Northumberland Community Bank, who were on Curtains.
The Soar team ran the migration scripts in the evening of the day NCB closed for business. By 11pm, the data had been migrated, verified and merged into NEFirst's production environment. By the following morning, NCB members were able to download the NEFirst app and access their accounts immediately.
Joanne Angus, NEFirst's CEO, is happy to take a call from any credit union considering this move.
Arrange a reference call with Joanne →Since moving to Soar
- Members
- 8,500→21,000
- FTE staff
- 8→10
- Annual profit
- £22,000→£159,000
06
What due diligence should look like
If you're evaluating any provider, including us, these are the questions a board should be asking.
- 1
Where is the data, and who owns it?
Look for cloud escrow agreements with named third parties.
- 2
What happens if you change hands?
Look at ownership structure, funding, profitability.
- 3
What’s included, and what’s a separate contract?
Add up the real total cost across portal, app, payments, credit checks, document generation, hosting and support.
- 4
What does the roadmap look like?
Ask for specific examples of features released in the last twelve months.
- 5
Who are your reference clients, and can we speak to them directly?
A confident provider gives you names and numbers, not curated quotes.
- 6
What does migration actually involve?
Ask for a specific, named example.
- 7
What are the contract terms?
Look for rolling contracts and reasonable notice periods, not multi-year lock-ins.
We're happy to answer all of these on a call. We'd also encourage you to ask them of every provider you're considering.
The honest summary
Legacy stack
- Multiple vendors, multiple contracts, multiple bills
- Local infrastructure you're responsible for
- Upgrades charged as separate modules
- Roadmap decided elsewhere
- Real consolidation risk across the sector
Soar
- One platform, one contract, one team
- Cloud-native, multi-AZ on AWS, included
- New features released to every client
- Roadmap shaped by client conversations
- Self-funded, profitable, founder-led
See Soar with your own data
Send us an extract from your current system and we'll load it into a private staging environment, free, within days. No contract, no obligation.
Most boards make their decision after they've logged in and seen their own members on Soar, not after a sales presentation.