RALEIGH, N.C.–The $2.6-billion Coastal Federal Credit Union said it will be absorbing in a merger the $53-million Freedom Credit Union.
Both boards have voted in favor of the merger, which is to become effective July 1 pending final approval from regulators and Freedom's membership, who will vote on the merger later this year.
Coastal said that as part of the merger it will place all Freedom employees into comparable roles, and will also maintain the CU’s four branches. Plans call for the two CUs to operate as separate entities until a full conversion from Freedom's systems to Coastal's can be completed, scheduled for November.
"The opportunity to partner with Coastal is just too attractive to pass up," said Jeff Jones, Freedom's president and CEO. "Coastal offers the size, strength and resources of an industry leader, with the cooperative values and local focus of a small credit union. The merger is a great move for our credit union and expands the products, services and conveniences we can offer our members. It will also provide more long-term opportunities for our employees, and will overcome many of the challenges we face as a small credit union, such as rising regulatory and compliance costs.”
Chuck Purvis, Coastal's president and CEO, added "I'm excited about the opportunities this merger will present to both organizations. We have more than 6,000 Coastal members living within the greater Henderson and Rocky Mount areas who will benefit from this natural expansion of our geographic reach."
Meanwhile, in San Francisco, San Francisco Municipal Railway Employees Federal Credit Union said its board has voted in favor of pursuing a merger with UNIFY Financial Credit Union, which is currently transitioning its name from Western Federal Credit Union.
“Through the proposed merger, SFMREFCU members will join the UNIFY family, and have the advantages of a comprehensive product offering, nationwide branch network, 24/7 telephone Contact Center, and the latest banking technologies,” SFMREFCU said in a statement.
SFMREFCU’s San Francisco branch will remain open, and all staff will remain with UNIFY.
“As a smaller credit union with limited staff and financial resources, in an increasingly competitive financial services market, we realized that a merger partnership was the most logical step to ensure we bring members the very best from their credit union. After a very thoughtful process of evaluating many potential credit union partners, we couldn’t be more pleased to collaborate with UNIFY,” said D. McCray, Sr., SFMREFCU board chairman. “As a $2-billion credit union, UNIFY has the leadership, expertise and resources to provide our members with significantly more value through many new products and services, an extensive branch network, and more competitive rates…We look forward to putting this opportunity to a member vote, and couldn’t be more enthusiastic about a combined future as UNIFY.”
UNIFY CEO Gordon Howe added, “We are excited about our proposed partnership with SFMREFCU and the opportunity to bring its members many new benefits from their credit union—while keeping the personalized service the credit union has always delivered through its outstanding staff. We have a long history in Northern California and close ties with the community through UNIFY’s existing seven branches in the Bay Area. Not only will this merger bring our collective members immediate benefits, it also enhances our long-term value to our members, sponsors and local communities. We have great respect for the SFMREFCU team, and look forward to working with them through the merger process and beyond.”
The merger has received regulatory approval, and the credit union is in the process of putting the merger to a SFMREFCU member vote.