Here’s what Keesler Federal Credit Union members should know about proposed merger
Those who do their banking at Keesler Credit Union in South Mississippi may be wondering what a merger announced this week will mean for them.
The merger of Keesler FCU, based in Mississippi, and Louisiana-based Jefferson Financial Federal Credit Union will create one of the the largest credit unions in the Southeast.
Before the merger is complete, the federal review process must be completed and members of both credit unions will vote for the merger. That’s expected to take about a year, said T. Bradley Keith, director of public relations and communications for Keesler FCU.
Legal Day is when Jefferson Financial becomes a division of Keesler FCU.
What will change?
“Nothing will change for our members,” Keith said.
The advantage for Keesler members is the company will grow from 41 branches in Louisiana to 55, he said. Keesler has seven branches in the New Orleans region now.
“That will jump to 21 and stretch all the way to Baton Rouge,” he said, once the merger is complete
Will there be branch closings or layoffs?
While banks across the country are closing local branches and cutting staff , that won’t happen in the merger of Keesler and Jefferson federal credit unions, Keith said.
“Not a single job will be lost with either credit union,” he said, and neither credit union will lose any locations.
“Our employees will rise to about 900,” he said.
Keesler FCU members will use the same bank accounts and credit cards after the merger.
More branches, products
As membership grows with the merger, Keesler FCU will be able to offer more products and services, he said, with savings from shared efficiencies.
The merger will increase the Keesler FCU asset base to just under $5 billion from $2.3 billion in less than 10 years. This all began when Andrew Swoger became president and CEO of Keesler FCE, he said, and instituted a growth plan.
Keesler FCU was established in 1947 and has 40 locations across Mississippi, Alabama and Louisiana and the United Kingdom. In January, it was named among the top 500 regional banks and credit unions in the United States, as ranked in a study of 9,440 banks and credit unions across the United States by Newsweek and Plant-A Insights Group.
This story was originally published November 14, 2024 at 1:44 PM.
