DURANGO, Colo.–Two Colorado credit unions have announced merger plans. Members of Southwest Colorado FCU have voted in favor of merging into Denver-based Credit Union of Colorado.
The $55-million Southwest Colorado FCU serves members in the southwestern counties of Archuleta, Dolores, La Plata, Montezuma and San Juan. In a statement, the CUs said the SCFCU Durango branch will remain open with current staff.
The $1.6-billion Credit Union of Colorado is the fifth-largest credit union in the state, has 16 branches and more than 134,000 members, according to a statement released by the credit union.
“This merger is great news for our members,” Emily Ter Maat, CEO of Southwest Colorado FCU said in a statement. “By joining with a larger, more diversified credit union, we’ll be able to offer our members a sound and secure future without sacrificing the personalized service and dedication to our community that they trust us to deliver. We would not have taken this step if we had not found a partner whose culture was consistent with ours.”
Added Terry Leis, CEO of Credit Union of Colorado, “We could not be more pleased to welcome Southwest Colorado Federal Credit Union members to our Credit Union of Colorado family. We are looking forward to honoring the Southwest Colorado Federal tradition of serving members and the community.”
New Year, New Institution
The deal will be finalized on Jan. 1, 2020.
Leis told the Denver Business Journal Credit Union of Colorado is interested in other mergers, but “not for mergers’ sake.”
The Denver Business Journal added its analysis shows there are now more credit unions headquartered in Colorado than banks.