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Connecticut has now seen three credit union mergers this year, with the most recent deal bringing together Greater Watertown Federal Credit Union and Waterbury-based FD Community Federal Credit Union.
FD Community FCU acquired Greater Watertown FCU in a transaction that was completed on Aug. 2.
GWFCU had almost $21 million in total assets and more than 2,500 members as of June 30, according to NCUA data. FD Community, which has two branches in Waterbury, has retained GWFCU’s Watertown branch as a third branch.
In a letter to members earlier this year, GWFCU’s board of directors said several factors drove the decision to pursue a merger, including the challenges faced by a small institution.
“Our size does not lend itself to the economies of scale necessary to offer competitive pricing of our products,” the board of directors said in its letter. “Since much of our membership is beyond their prime borrowing years, we are unable to generate sufficient loan income to pay competitive dividend rates. And, we are unable to offer emerging technologies to improve our remote interactions with our membership.”
FD Community had about $118 million in assets and 9,900 members before the merger. In a separate letter to FD Community members earlier this year, President and CEO David Sacco and Chairman Joseph Del Buono said the merger would bring added resources to explore new technologies and offer new products and services.
The combined field of membership includes people who live, work, worship or attend school in Waterbury, Naugatuck, Cheshire, Watertown, Wolcott, Plymouth, Prospect, Oakville, Thomaston or Middlebury. Businesses and other legal entities in those towns are also eligible for membership.
The merger follows two others in Connecticut this year. Bethel-based Consolidated Controls Corp. Federal Credit Union merged into Shelton-based Mutual Security Credit Union in April, and East Hartford-based America’s First Network Credit Union acquired Groton Municipal Employees Federal Credit Union in February.
