Credit unions buying community banks has been a hot topic across both industries for years.

Less discussed, however, is whether the buyers involved in these transactions are ultimately finding what they are looking for.

DFCU Financial in Dearborn, Michigan, for one, said so far things are going better than it anticipated.

The credit union has acquired two community banks in recent years. First, the $6.7 billion asset company – the third largest credit union based in Michigan – in early 2023 bought $689 million-asset First Citrus Bank in Tampa, Florida.

Then last November DFCU announced its second whole bank acquisition in the Sunshine State with the purchase of $794 million-asset Winter Park National Bank in Winter Park. That deal has yet to close.

In addition, DFCU bought the Florida operations of Iowa-based MidWestOne Financial Group, which included $158.8 million of deposits, $162.2 million in gross loans and the bank’s two branches.

In an interview, DFCU’s president and CEO Ryan Goldberg told Tyfone that profitability from the First Citrus Bank acquisition has exceeded expectations through two years.

Goldberg said because the organization does not disclose financials regarding the deal in any public filing, he could not discuss specifics.

“But when we did the deal, we had a proforma of the amount of net income we would achieve each year. We have achieved three years of projected income in two years of operations,” Goldberg said.

After a record-setting 22 CU-bank deals were announced last year, 2025 is off to a slow start with only three transactions announced so far.

DFCU is not alone in its interest in Florida, which has been a hot spot for credit union-buying-bank deals.

According to S&P Global Market Intelligence data, 17 Florida community banks have been bought by credit unions all time – the most of any state. Illinois is second with 15 bank acquisitions by credit unions.

DFCU has more than 241,000 members and earned roughly $42.9 million in 2024, a 12% decrease compared to a year earlier, according to call report data from the National Credit Union Administration.

But Goldberg told Tyfone the $43 million in net income was post its cash-back dividend and several discretionary strategic initiatives to protect the credit union and ensure successful operations going forward.

“We sold securities at a loss, reinvested the proceeds for higher yields and funded reserves beyond requirements to ensure if there was an economic downturn we were prepared. Net income before these three actions was closer to $85 million,” he said.

“We have achieved three years of projected income in two years of operations.”

 – Ryan Goldberg
President and CEO
DFCU Financial