TwinStar Credit Union and Northwest Community Credit Union Announce Merger Approvals

LACEY, Wash., May 17, 2023 (Newswire.com) - TwinStar Credit Union and Northwest Community Credit Union (NWCU) are excited to announce their merger has received regulatory approval along with member approval by a vast majority vote of the Northwest Community Credit Union membership. The legal date of the merger for the two organizations is planned for June 12, 2023.

The newly merged organization will serve more than 245,000 members with a branch network of 36 locations across the states of Oregon and Washington. Combined, the organization will have assets of over $4 billion.

The biggest change at the time of the legal merger is that Northwest Community Credit Union will become "Northwest Community Credit Union, a division of TwinStar Credit Union", as the organization works to determine a unified name for the combined organization. From a member perspective, it will be business as usual as the organization ramps up efforts to fully integrate their systems in 2024.

NWCU Chief Executive Officer John D. Iglesias expressed his optimism for the future of the combined organization. 

"We are excited that our members see the additional benefits of forming this partnership and bringing our two credit unions together for the benefit of members, employees, and communities," said Iglesias. 

"Although our combined organization will be double in size, the true theme of this merger has been and will continue to be about being 'Better Together.' Thank you to NWCU members and employees for their active participation in this voting process and for their commitment and loyalty to help ensure we continue to grow and thrive."

According to both chief executives, this merger is another great example of the impact credit unions can have when they pursue a cooperative partnership with another like-minded organization. 

"We are now eager to begin the process of pooling and combining our resources and our talent to provide further efficiencies and economies of scale to all those we serve," said Chief Executive Officer of TwinStar Credit Union Jeff Kennedy.

"The boards and leadership teams of both credit unions have worked side by side over the past several months to ensure the original intent of this partnership remained, and that intent was to work collaboratively to make decisions for the future organization and stay focused on our passion for serving members. We know members have many choices when it comes to a financial institution, and we take that very seriously. We've been lucky to form this great partnership and are excited about the future. The end goal is to build a greater experience for employees and members, and then everyone wins!" 

TwinStar's Jeff Kennedy will be the Chief Executive Officer of the new organization and NWCU's John Iglesias will be the President.

More information, including FAQs regarding the merger can be found on both the TwinStar and NWCU websites. 

About TwinStar Credit Union
Established in 1938 by teachers at Olympia High School as Thurston County Teachers Credit Union, TwinStar Credit Union has been providing affordable loans, excellent deposit rates, and great service to their members for 85 years. Instead of enriching stockholders like banks, TwinStar is committed to serve and return the most value to members as a not-for-profit, member-owned financial institution. Community commitment is also at the heart of TwinStar. They believe that healthier and happier people make great communities. TwinStar stands behind its brand promise: Realizing Financial Dreams Together. Their vision is to be a leading community-conscious organization by providing a lifetime of solutions to create financial peace of mind.

About Northwest Community Credit Union (NWCU)
NWCU is headquartered in Eugene, Oregon. Founded in 1949 by six members of Weyerhaeuser, a wood products corporation, NWCU has grown to serve a diversified membership of more than 107,000 members with 15 locations in 11 Oregon cities. NWCU is proud to support community and educational outreach, provide emergency relief, and gave $450,000 in direct support in 2022. NWCU is committed to providing superior service, compassion, and loyalty to their members, their employees, and the communities they serve. 

Source: TwinStar Credit Union