TruStone Financial Federal Credit Union and Firefly Credit Union have approved a merger that would make the combined organization the second-largest credit union in Minnesota and among the largest 100 in the United States.
Both boards of directors approved the merger on May 5 and are awaiting regulatory approval.
The combined credit union, which would operate under the TruStone name, would have about 190,000 members, ranking it second in Minnesota behind Wings Financial Credit Union with 280,000 members.
The combined credit union would have more than $3 billion in assets and 23 branch locations in Minnesota and Wisconsin.
TruStone, which was founded in 1939 by eight Minneapolis teachers, was initially known as the Minneapolis Federation of Teachers Credit Union. Firefly was founded in 1925 and was formerly known as the US Federal Credit Union, initially serving postal and federal employees.
"I couldn't be more excited about this merger," said Dale Turner, Firefly's president and chief executive, in a news release. "After much consideration and a lot of hard work, the board of directors and I can say with confidence that this merger would provide a tremendous amount of value to our members, more opportunity for our employees and would allow us to make a bigger impact on the communities we serve."
The credit unions' members still must approve the deal. If all goes as planned, the merger would be finalized in January 2021. Both sides have begun preliminary work on integration, and both systems are expected to be fully integrated in 2022.
"This merger is a true strategic partnership, one highlighted by the fact that we're working collaboratively to determine best practices for the combined organization," TruStone CEO Tim Bosiacki said in the release.
According to local trade association Minnesota Credit Union Network, more than 1.8 million Minnesotans are members of 101 credit unions in Minnesota.
