INDUSTRY NEWS
Great Lakes CU uses M&A to forge steep growth trajectory
The $1.6 billion-asset institution has doubled its size since CEO Steven Bugg took over in 2018.
Great Lakes Credit Union continues to use M&A as a vehicle to rapid growth.
The Bannockburn, Illinois-based credit union now boasts 95,000 members and roughly $1.6 billion in assets, according to call report data from the National Credit Union Administration.
Just five years ago, Great Lakes had fewer than 85,000 members and $871 million of assets.
In fact, the credit union has basically doubled its asset size since President and CEO Steven Bugg took the helm in 2018.
How has the organization managed to grow so quickly? Mergers have certainly played a large role.
In June, Great Lakes closed a merger with Encurage Financial Network Credit Union that brought 14,000 new Chicagoland members and more than $200 million in assets to GLCU.
Then earlier this month, members of Chicago Municipal Employees Credit Union voted in favor of its merger with Great Lakes. That transaction is expected to close later this year and will add $59 million of assets and 11,000 members to Great Lakes.
And, most recently, members of Moline, Illinois-based Vibrant Credit union this week received a letter notifying them of Great Lakes’ plans to purchase the credit union’s branch in Danville.
Vermillion County First reported that the letter said Vibrant members can expect more information about the deal and its impact on the branch soon.
The branch deal will add 12,000 accounts, $66 million in deposits and $22 million in loans to Great Lakes.
“We are thrilled to expand our footprint into Central Illinois and Western Indiana,” Bugg said in a press release. “This expansion not only enhances our membership base but also strengthens our ability to give back.”
Great Lakes may just be trying to keep pace with other banks and credit unions in the state. Illinois boasts a handful of large financial institutions including Northern Trust, Alliant Credit Union, Citizens Equity First CU and Wintrust.
The state has also been the site for several of the credit union-buying-bank deals that were struck in recent years. Michigan State University FCU, in fact, bought two Illinois banks to gain a foothold in the state in 2023.
Great Lakes Credit Union earned roughly $1.5 million through the third quarter of 2024, a 34% decrease compared to a year earlier, according to call report data from the National Credit Union Administration.
“We are thrilled to expand our footprint into Central Illinois and Western Indiana. This expansion not only enhances our membership base but also strengthens our ability to give back.”
– Steven Bugg
President and CEO
Great Lakes Credit Union