NuMark, NorthStar credit unions plan to merge
NuMark Credit Union and NorthStar Credit Union announced Thursday their intent to merge, creating a suburban-based credit union with more than 50,000 members and assets of more than $500 million.
Officials said in a statement that the members of Warrenville-based NorthStar have yet to vote on the merger, but the plan has already received regulatory approval from the Illinois Department of Financial and Professional Regulation and the National Credit Union Administration.
The new credit union, which would operate under the Joliet-based NuMark Credit Union banner, would be the seventh largest suburban-based agency based on membership, according to NCUA data. NuMark, which was chartered in 1954, has approximately 36,000 members with $305 million in assets, according to NCUA information. NorthStar, chartered in 1997, has about 15,500 members and assets of around $205 million.
The new credit union would have 10 branches, including locations in Aurora, Crest Hill, Countryside, Joliet, New Lenox, Plainfield, Tinley Park, and Warrenville. Additional sites include the Bridgeport neighborhood of Chicago and the Naperville BP employee campus,
"Without a doubt, this truly collaborative partnership would provide an opportunity to elevate member experience and to enhance member value across the board," said Lloyd Fredendall, president and CEO of NorthStar.
If the merger receives approval, Fredendall will become CEO of the organization. NuMark Credit Union President and CEO Ann M. Dubie would remain in that position until her retirement sometime before the end of the year.
Unlike traditional banks, credit unions are nonprofit organizations whose customers - called members - have a vote in operations, which is typically conducted at an annual meeting. NorthStar members will receive notification of a special meeting in the next few weeks, along with a ballot and voting instructions, NuMark Vice President of Marketing Kari M. Endres said Thursday. NorthStar members will have the opportunity to complete their ballot until the date of the special meeting, which will happen in October, Enders added.
NuMark members will not need to vote on the merger, since the organization will continue to operate under its name after the merger, Endres said.
If approved, the merger could happen as soon as Nov. 1, Enders said, with both organizations fully integrated in 2021.
The merger is the latest of a number of acquisitions among area credit unions in the past few years, Last June, Schaumburg-based Andigo Credit Union and Gurnee-based Consumers Credit Union completed a one-year merger plan to become the fifth largest credit union in Illinois. In March, stockholders of Arlington Heights-based Ben Franklin Financial approved the bank's acquisition by Corporate America Family Credit Union, which absorbed the bank's operations in Arlington Heights and Rolling Meadows into the credit union.
In 2019, Bannockburn-based Great Lakes Credit Union acquired Chicago-based North Side Community Federal Credit Union. Also that year, Golden Eagle Community Bank, based in Woodstock, was acquired by Wisconsin-based Advia Credit Union.