Credit Union Mergers: Still Trolling Along...

   

A purple haze of financial logic? [link]

😎 Parsing out  troll speak:   "Anonymous January 13, 2026 at 10:32 AM"

 1) "I do understand the financial mechanics. CU mergers are balance sheet combos, not buy/sell with consideration. Capital, after a mark to market of A&L of the merged credit union, is combined, not lost."

✔ Response:  Less than half an understanding. "Buy and sell" is an explicitly legal option. CUs may simply sell all their assets in the free market, for fair value and distribute the remaining reserves/equity to member-owners. (You do know that, right?) A give-away is not the only choice.

2) "I also know enough to know you are correct. In each cu deal, a merged and surviving or continuing cu must be designated. A smaller CU can be the surving cu. A charter distinction, though. Doesn’t mean the surviving smaller cu ELT and board will be in charge - those a part of negotiated terms. "

✔ Response: : Thank you for acknowledging ("you are correct...") that a much smaller CU can readily acquire a much larger CU. There are hundreds of CUs and banks which could acquire SECU today, if the Board wanted to sell out.

3) "Think about it in reality, though. Let’s say SAFE was the surviving CU. New CU will be called SAFE, CA HQ, BECU gets one board seat, and they retain one BECU ELT. Think BECU board approves that? 

✔ Response:  Why not? SAFE is operating at a much lower cost and any other benefits of merging are the same. It certainly doesn't rain as much in Sacramento... and the Napa valley vineyards are closer!

4) "Think members vote for it?" 

✔ Response:  Sure! Re-read BECU's glowing press release on a "merger of equals" [link]. Benefits to BECU members are identical. 'Course the way you phrase it, the BECU board gets canned... but this is not about them, is it?

 5)  "Think regulators will approve that?"  

✔ Response:   Why wouldn't they? Who loses when credit union members win?

6) "Appreciate your points of what’s legally possible versus viable. Both your scenarios, of 100% of a merged cu capital being paid out and a huge CU being merged into a CU 1/10 its size, a so incredibly far-fetched and disconnected from reality they won’t happen, Also would depend on pure negligence, stupidity and breaches of duty by groups large and small."

✔ Response:   In our SAFE/BECU example you say: "...would depend on pure negligence, stupidity and breaches of duty by groups large and small." Which "groups" are you talking about here? 

5) "BTW, if SAFE acquired BECU where does BECU’s capital go? Fleeced from BECU’s 1.6 million members and given to SAFE’s members? "

✔ Response:  What's the issue, it's all kumbaya capital anyway, right? Wouldn't Jefferies approve it? ("Of important note was that BECU had hired the global investment firm Jefferies, LLC "[link])  

 Describing a CU merger proposal as "pure negligence, stupidity and breaches of duty"... well, whoa now!