The NCUA approved 32 mergers in April, up from the 22 mergers cleared by the federal agency in April 2013.
Only four of the 32 credit unions had assets greater than $50 million, NCUA's April Insurance Activity Report showed.
Five received the green light to merge because of poor financial condition, three for lack of growth, one for declining field of membership, one for loss of sponsor and one for inability to obtain officials. Twenty-one credit unions received the OK to consolidate for expanded services.
April's largest approved merger was the $134 million Tri-Co FCU in Randolph, N.J. with the $3.2 billion Visions FCU in Endwell, N.Y. Tri-Co FCU's consolidation was green lighted because of its poor financial condition, according to NCUA. The credit union has posted a net worth under 7% since 2009 when it was 6.52% compared to a peer average of 10.75%. By the end of 2013, Tri-Co FCU's net worth plunged to 3.97% and fell slightly again to 3.70% by the end of the first quarter of this year, NCUA financial performance reports show.
In addition to significant drops in loan, fee and investment income from 2009 to 2013, Tri-Co FCU posted a total net income loss of nearly $6 million in the same years, according to NCUA financial performance reports. At the end of this year's first quarter, the cooperative posted a net income loss of $1.3 million.
Three other credit unions with assets greater than $50 million that received NCUA approval to merge because of expanded services were the $110 million Lakeview Credit Union in Neenah, Wis. and the $70 million Best Advantage Credit Union in Brillion, Wis., which merged into the $402 million CitizensFirst Credit Union in Oshkosh, Wis., a rare three-way consolidation; and the $96 million BestSource Credit Union in Waterford, Mich. that consolidated with the $192 million Oakland County Credit Union in Waterford, Mich.
Four other credit unions received NCUA's approval to merge because of their poor financial condition. They were the $14.4 million LV East Federal Credit Union in Easton, Pa., to merge with the $63.3 million IRCO Federal Credit Union in Phillipsburg, N.J.; the $8.7 million Macon County School Employees Federal Credit Union in Decatur, Ill., to consolidate with the $514 million 1st MidAmerica Credit Union in Bethalto, Ill.; the $2.7 million NAFCO Nebraska Federal Credit Union in Grand Island, Neb., to merge with the $704 million SAC FCU in Papillion, Neb., and the $8.1 million Tombstone Federal Credit Union in Tombstone, Ariz., to consolidate with the $1.3 billion Vantage West Credit Union in Tucson, Ariz.
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