One of the largest merger announcements came from the nation's heartland. On Jan. 22 the $582 million CitizensFirst Credit Union in Oshkosh, Wis., said it plans to consolidate with the $118 million Community Credit Union in La Crosse, Wis.

In May 2014, CitizensFirst CU completed its merger with the $109 million Lakeview Credit Union in Neenah and the $68 million Best Advantage Credit Union in Brillion that CitizensFirst President/CEO Kevin Ralofsky called a strategic decision to build greater scale and size in the marketplace.

With Community CU merging into CitizensFirst CU, the cooperative will become even with $700 million in assets and more than 58,000 members.

Ralofsky will continue as CEO and Chris Butler, president/CEO of Community First, will be named president of the western region and oversee the cooperative growth strategies, sales and operations.

If approved by Community First members, as well as state and federal agencies, the merger is expected to be finalized by late spring 2015. Later this year, CitizensFirst also is expected to announce a new name.

"It is crucial that credit unions continue to rise above the status quo," Brown said. "Our partnership with CitizensFirst is an opportunity to grow by expanding our resources and deepening out roots, so to speak. We hope to have a greater, positive impact on the individual lives and businesses that make this work possible."

In Michigan, the $13.1 million Rockford Community Federal Credit Union in Rockford announced that it merged into the $126 million Community West Credit Union in Kenwood, Mich., Jan. 1. In that same announcement made last month, the $6.4 million Founders Community in Middleville also said it is consolidating with Community West. That merger was scheduled for completion Feb. 2, according to a prepared statement posted on the Michigan Credit Union League's website.

Community West now manages $146 million in assets and serves more than 20,000 members.

On Jan. 21, the $15.2 million Sunnyvale Federal Credit Union in Sunnyvale, Calif., said its members voted overwhelmingly to merge with the $1.8 billion Technology Credit Union in San Jose, Calif.

On Jan. 1, the $87 million Les Bois Credit Union in Garden City, Idaho, and its 9,070 members completed its merger with the $4.1 billion Mountain America Credit Union in West Jordan, Utah. The merger will extend Mountain America's reach in the Boise area and brings its total branch count to 82, the fifth largest among all financial cooperatives in the nation.

The $520 million Golden Plains Credit Union in Garden City, Kan., announced Jan. 8 that it finalized its merger with the $71 million Central Star Credit Union in Wichita, Kan., and its 8,550 members.

An additional seven credit unions, all under $50 million in assets, also announced the completion of consolidations with their larger cooperative counterparts in early January:  In Lakewood, Colo., the $5.3 million Blue Spruce Federal Credit Union with the $197 million Coors Credit Union in Golden; the $41 million, Guardian Angel Credit Union in Berlin, N.H. into the $2.5 billion Service Credit Union in Portsmouth; the $27 million Valley Credit Union in Chippewa Falls, Wis. with the $929 million WESTconsin Credit Union in Menomonie, the $19.5 million Cicost Federal Credit Union in Sherman, Texas with the $283 million City Credit Union in Dallas.

Other mergers completed in January were the $3.4 million Sargent Employees Federal Credit Union in New Haven, Conn., into the $429 million Connex Credit Union also in New Haven; the $43 million Purina Credit Union in St. Louis, Mo., with the $1.4 billion Anheuser-Busch Employees Credit Union, also based in St. Louis; the $6.9 million Three I Credit Union in Burlington, Iowa into the $96 million Alliant Credit Union in Dubuque, Iowa; the $19 million Northwood Credit union in Royal Oak, Mich., with the $223 million Cornerstone Community Financial Credit Union in Auburn Hills, Mich.; and the $37 million Grand Rapids Family Credit Union in Grand Rapids, Mich. with the $669 million Michigan First Credit Union in Lathrup Village, Mich.