Middlesex Federal Savings recognized that to compete on a bigger scale, they needed more than a standard portal; they required an open platform that provided technical transparency and autonomy to integrate a sophisticated, third-party agentic AI.
By moving from initial terms in January to a fully functional integration in under 90 days, Middlesex shattered the typical timeline for complex projects, proving that community FIs can deploy secure, high-impact innovations in weeks, not years.
By turning their digital banking environment into a programmable interface, Middlesex enabled their AI agent to autonomously execute tasks like wires and transfers, ensuring the bank is never locked into a single vendor’s roadmap.
Since 1890, Middlesex Federal Savings has understood that community banking requires constant evolution. Today, as a forward-thinking institution bridging a 130-year legacy with a bold vision for cutting-edge digital finance, Middlesex is redefining their member experience. Whether visiting branches in Davis, Teele, or Medford Squares, customers experience a bank that honors its deep local roots while aggressively investing in the future. As Karen Grindrod, VP of Platform Innovation at Middlesex, puts it: “If a community bank wants to survive, they need to meet the needs of the people that are now banking.”
Middlesex recognized that true innovation required more than just standard digital tools; they sought to integrate a sophisticated, third-party AI agent capable of autonomously planning and navigating complex banking workflows. Unlike traditional chatbots that simply answer questions or virtual assistants that redirect to humans, Middlesex envisioned a solution rooted in agentic banking. They required a system that could reason through tasks and execute real banking transactions, such as moving money, opening accounts, and resolving complex issues.
However, integrating an external agentic AI typically demands months of custom development and deep API access that legacy systems often lack. Middlesex knew they had to break the traditional mold of slow-moving institutional tech. “Banks aren’t used to moving that fast. Banks are turtles,” Karen noted. “And we can’t be that way because if we are, we’re all going to get gobbled up by the big guys.” To stay competitive, Middlesex Federal Savings sought a vendor that prioritized innovation and quickness to launch to bridge the gap between their ambitious AI goals and the complex realities of core integration.
Ultimately, Middlesex was able to leverage the Narmi Open Platform, utilizing the Forward Deployed Engineering (FDE) team to turn their digital banking environment into a programmable interface for the AI agent. This “developer-first” approach allowed the assistant, known as Davis, to simulate full online and mobile banking functionality while ensuring the bank was never “locked in” to a single vendor’s roadmap.
For Middlesex, the decision was driven by a need for technical transparency and autonomy. “We were looking for a platform that would give us the ability to be flexible. For us to succeed in the arena of fintech… we need open API access,” Karen explained. “We community banks need to think beyond the brick and mortar. There needs to be an agent that can answer real questions. And partnering with Narmi gives us that ability.”
The FDE team implemented strategic modifications to ensure the AI could operate with the same depth as a human user – executing live tasks and navigating workflows autonomously – all while remaining gated behind Multifactor Authentication (MFA).
“I had little expectations for the implementation, but I’m really happy the way it turned out. Narmi is letting us think outside the box and giving us options that we didn’t have before.” — Karen, VP of Platform Innovation, Middlesex Federal Savings
The collaboration set a new benchmark for speed. By moving from initial terms in January to a fully functional integration in under 90 days, the partnership shattered the industry standard for AI-to-core projects. This agility is a core component of the Narmi experience that Middlesex has come to rely on. “There are releases from Narmi every single month. Not twice a year, not when the core provider wants,” Karen observed.
The success of this project proves that complex, secure projects can be deployed in weeks, not years. By prioritizing an open-access mentality, Middlesex has successfully closed the gap between community trust and digital-first innovation.
“The fact that Narmi embraced this idea with excitement and has worked with us so well… I couldn’t be happier. The team has been phenomenal.”
By pioneering this integration, Middlesex Federal Savings has established a definitive blueprint for how community financial institutions can outmaneuver megabanks and fintechs through agility and rapid technical deployment. The initiative truly cements Middlesex’s position as a formidable, future-proof institution that honors its local legacy while delivering the advanced capabilities that are expected in our increasingly digital world.
GAFCU wanted to offer CDs in the CAO platform but didn’t want to have to manually send CD receipts every time an account was opened. This labor-intensive method inhibited staff from capitalizing on a channel crucial for deposit growth. Narmi's platform customizations provided a solution: automated delivery of personalized CD receipts to each account holder via email.
Asset Size: $300M
Location: Paramus, NJ
Products: Consumer Digital Banking, Digital Account Opening
GAFCU encountered difficulties promoting additional product offerings, particularly with their CD accounts. They came to Narmi for a solution that could help them effectively cross-sell their CD products.
Narmi's platform customization streamlines operations for GAFCU’s staff, and will enable GAFCU to significantly reduce manual efforts spent on tracking and sending CD receipts.
Grasshopper’s support team historically used Zendesk to manage their client support operations. However, ensuring client conversations on the Narmi support portal remained consistent with the conversations on Zendesk took valuable time away from their support team. Using Narmi’s platform customizations, Narmi built a full integration between Zendesk and the Narmi support portal, saving Grasshopper’s support team over 30 hours each week on manual tasks.
Asset Size: $820MM
Location: New York, NY
Products: Business Digital Banking
Grasshopper recognized the need to optimize their workflow by automating the connection between Zendesk and the Narmi messaging platform. This desire stemmed from a commitment to enhance operational efficiency and streamline processes.
Through this integration, Grasshopper can take full advantage of their existing tech stack. Reclaiming the 30 hours it took to copy messages from Zendesk to the Narmi platform allows Grasshopper’s support team to redirect their focus towards high-impact initiatives and delivering exceptional client experiences.
UFCU’s team was experiencing a high volume of applications that needed to be manually flagged, and they wanted to incorporate a tool into their risk management stack that could help relieve that burden. In partnership with Narmi, UFCU adopted NeuroID to automatically flag and decision for risky applications and send staff notifications when there are incidences of fraudulent activity. Now, UFCU’s staff can sit back and relax knowing that NeuroID is automatically decisioning on those risky applications, even when there’s a fraud attack.
“There were 33 applications that were declined outright on Sunday when otherwise it would have gone to Review or Accepted. This addresses Synthetic fraud which is difficult to track.”
- Russell Shugart
Asset Size: $4.5B
Location: Austin, TX
Products: Consumer Account Opening
UFCU was experiencing fraudulent applications moving to “review” or “approved” status. These applications required constant manual review, causing their staff to be bogged down and overwhelmed when there was a fraud attack.
With NeuroID catching risky applications and automatically decisioning them, UFCU’s staff saves hours every week. In the short time since implementation, Russell calculated that NeuroID saves more than 40 hours a month in manual review time and helps UFCU avoid charge-offs averaging $400 per fraudulent account. With Narmi’s close integration with NeuroID, UFCU can more reliably trust application decisions, giving them a safety net when experiencing intense fraud attacks.
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