Cuscal will continue to seek out new customers among superannuation funds as the central services entity for credit unions seeks to counteract the continuing amalgamation among its core customers. In a media release yesterday to publicise the first day at work for its new managing director, Cuscal listed key elements of the plan as including continuing to service the credit union customer base, new product initiatives, attracting new customer segments and "looking for undervalued assets aligned to the strategy". Craig Kennedy, the new managing director, has returned to banking after several years running Espreon, a vendor of managed services to the property and legal services sector. Kennedy replaces John Gilbert, who retired after more than a decade as CEO. Kennedy first worked in retail banking in the mid 1980s, shifting from Advance Bank to ING in the late 1990s, where he helped set up ING Direct.Asked about the impact of the latest phase of the credit crunch, which is restricting growth and affecting margins for his customers, Kennedy said Cuscal's transaction revenues were holding well for now.Cuscal reported a six per cent increase in net profit from normal operations, to $18.7 million in the year to June 2008, with a return on equity of 10.3 per cent, and in line with the prior year. So far none of Cuscal's depositors (which are mainly credit unions) has sought the government guarantee on deposits of more than $1 million and Cuscal at this stage does not expect any to do so.