In a major announcement early Thursday from one of San Antonio's biggest employers, USAA Financial Services says it is opening its membership to all veterans and their families.
The move means potentially 35 million more people will be able to join USAA.
USAA CEO General Joe Robles was scheduled to make the formal announcement Thursday morning at a Veteran's Day ceremony at USAA's San Antonio headquarters.
But earlier this week, he spoke with KENS 5 exclusively about the new policy.
"If you served in the military and your service was honorable, no matter when you served, what rank you were or what period, war or conflict in which you served, you are elgible to be a member of this company," Robles said.
Until now, veterans had a narrow time window during which they could sign up for insurance or financial services from the Fortune 500 company that serves military families.
Two factors are allowing USAA to expand its membership: Strong financial growth and its high tech abilities, which means the company will not have to add hundreds of employees to handle the increased business.
USAA currently has 7.3 million members and expects to add 100,000 a year with this expansion.
While the company will not be adding a significant number of new employees, the move will make USAA a bigger business, and Robles says that will be good for the San Antonio economy.
