SEATAC, Wash.—After losing money for four of the last five years, the 54-year-old Port of Seattle Federal Credit Union plans to merge into the $1.2-billion Sound Credit Union. The deal still has to be approved by state and federal regulators as well as credit union members.
The $10.4-million POSFCU lost $22,000 in 2013 and $62,000 in 2104.
Port of Seattle FCU board member Craig Kerr told the Puget Sound Business Journal that the credit union's “downfall” is simply a "financial reality." He said the CU has been forced to spend money on technology to compete with bigger lenders and has not generated enough loans to cover the costs.
"There's no real issues," Kerr told the publication. "It just comes a point in time when you have to face reality."
The CU earlier this month posted a notice to members on its website, saying the credit union recognized it was “not on a sustainable path” and had spent the past several years cutting costs by closing branches and reducing staff.
“Now we have simply run out of ways to further reduce costs,” POSFCU Manager George Bluhm wrote in the notice.