FALCON HEIGHTS, Minn.–The new year marks the official launch of one of the largest credit unions in Minnesota.
Effective Jan. 1, the merger of the $2.25-billion SPIRE Credit Union and the $1.75—billion Hiway Credit Union in St. Paul, Minn., is complete with the merged entity now known as Blaze Credit Union.
The CU has more than 250,000 members.
“This is an exciting time for all of our members, our 650+ Blaze Credit Union associates, and our communities,” said Blaze CEO Dan Stoltz, formerly SPIRE’s President/CEO. “When we first started talking about this alliance between SPIRE and Hiway, this date seemed so far away. I’m so grateful for the work our teams have put into shaping this new organization, from creating a new name and brand to developing new service standards to ensure our members have the best possible experience. And, wow, so much else.”
Added Dave Boden, the former president and CEO of Hiway Credit Union who is now president/chief transformation officer of Blaze CU, “It’s been an enormous effort and our teams have rocked it. With all of our combined talent and resources, we will be able to improve so many more lives, as well as our communities.”
Two Core Systems
In a statement, Blaze CU said because it will continue to operate on two separate core and online banking systems until Fall, for members it will generally be “business as usual.”
The credit union, which now has 26 branches and more than 650 employees, has introduced a new website at blazecu.com.
New Branding
In addition, it has introduced new branding that, as CUToday.info reported earlier, the credit union says include elements that “muse on regional geography and many Midwesterners’ love of the outdoors.”
“In the logo, the ‘B’ is carved to show a blazed trail to a destination,” the credit union said in a statement. “The color palette is full of coppers, golds and greens - colors of money which also reflect scenery like raw iron ore, warm sunsets, and the mighty Norway pines that line our roads and dot our city parks.”
With the new name and color palette is also a new tagline, “Go for it,” which Blaze CU said is about encouraging members to take “bold action toward their dreams, with Blaze as their trusted partner.”