STCU Agrees to Acquire Four Bank Branches

The four locations will expand STCU's field of membership as well as provide better services to rural areas.

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Spokane Teachers Credit Union has reached an agreement with the Portland, Ore.-based Umpqua Bank to acquire four of the bank’s locations.

STCU ($3.6 billion in assets, more than 205,000 members) made the joint announcement with Umpqua Bank on Thursday. If approved, it would expand the Liberty Lake, Wash.-based credit union into two new counties, while growing its footprint in its existing field of membership.

“While STCU members increasingly are accessing their accounts through online banking and our mobile app, a visit to an STCU branch location remains foundational to the STCU experience,” Ezra Eckhardt, STCU president/CEO, said.

According to the statement, this deal would help STCU members in rural communities have easier access to the credit union, “while welcoming more than 5,000 Umpqua customers into the STCU family.”

“Customer preferences continue to change how we deliver banking services. What remains the same is our strong commitment to supporting local communities and partnering with others to ensure the financial needs of customers are covered,” Brian Read, Umpqua’s EVP and head of retail banking, said. “We’re really pleased that STCU has agreed to purchase these four locations and will continue serving customers locally.”

According to the joint statement, if the acquisition is approved by the FDIC, the NCUA and the Washington State Department of Financial Institutions, they hope to have the acquisition finalized by the end of the year or early 2021.

“We will make this conversion as seamless as possible for Umpqua Bank customers,” Eckhart said. “Once approval is granted, they will receive all the information they need for a successful transition to the credit union.”

Umpqua employees will be offered positions at STCU, according to the statement.