As of Dec. 31, the NCUA listed REV as having 17 locations, including its headquarters and some without general public access, such as high schools and an Air Force base. The NCUA listed two branches each for the other credit unions. "Once the credit unions are fully integrated, REV will have a branch network of 15 locations across the Carolinas serving a total of 66,000 members, and assets of $900 million," the REV news release said.

The news release said REV will achieve economies of scale with the mergers, but it also said it would retain employees of both credit unions.

REV President/CEO Jason Lee said the mergers reflect "our cooperative spirit."

"Together, we will make a bigger impact on the financial wellness of thousands of people across North Carolina," Lee said. "By working alongside our new team members in the Rockingham and Wilmington markets, we will elevate the social and net economic impact in these communities."

Riegelwood was founded in 1953 for employees of the Riegel Paper Board Company. Riegelwood is in Columbus County on the Cape Fear River, 23 miles west of Wilmington, N.C. Its Leland branch is 15 miles east in Brunswick County.

Riegelwood is open to residents, workers and students in Columbus and northern Brunswick counties. It listed its potential membership as 36,999 as of Dec. 31.

For the 12 months ending Dec. 31, Riegelwood earned $298,408, down 67.8% from 2019. Its ROA was 0.31%, down from 0.96% in 2019.

Much of the drop came from a $213,815 loan loss provision in the fourth quarter, more than double its fourth-quarter 2019 provision. As a result, it recorded a $79,497 net loss in the quarter. It ended the year with a net worth ratio 14.26%, down 96 bps from a year earlier.

As a small credit union, Riegelwood lacked the resources necessary to offer the membership access to the products and services they wanted and deserve," June Bigford, Riegelwood's president/CEO, said in the news release. "I knew that without the right partner, we couldn't continue to move forward. We were lucky to find Jason and REV because they shared our values and are as passionate as we are about supporting our community."

Hamlet is based 80 miles east of Charlotte in a rural part of North Carolina that was once dotted with textile mills. It has a branch in Laurinburg, 16 miles further east. Both towns are just north of the South Carolina border.

The credit union's net worth ratio fell below 7% in 2018, and the NCUA began listing it as "undercapitalized" in 2019.

For the 12 months ending Dec. 31, Hamlet earned $75,080, compared with a $97,427 loss in 2019. Its ROA was 0.45%, up 108 basis points.

Its income from interest and fees fell about 30% last year, as its loan originations fell 39% to $1.2 million.

Its 2020 income was boosted by a $101,700 gain from loan loss provisions taken in the first nine months. However, in the fourth quarter, it lost $16,868 even though it recorded no loan loss provision (or gain). That compared with a gain of $13,061 in 2019's fourth quarter.

Hamlet's net worth ratio was 5.32% at Dec. 31, down 64 bps from a year earlier.

REV began as Charleston Air Base Federal Credit Union in 1955, and changed its name to Heritage Trust Federal Credit Union in 1986 and to REV in March 2020.

REV's net income rose 46.5% to $4.8 million in 2020, as loan originations increased 60.7% to $322.8 million. ROA was 0.70%, up 18 bps from a year earlier.

REV ended 2020 with a net worth ratio of 9.19%, down 61 bps from a year earlier.