ALBANY, Ga. – Docco Regional FCU said it has agreed to acquire troubled Southern Traditions FCU, creating a $125 credit union, the biggest in southern Georgia.
The merger puts an end to Toccoa, Ga.-based Southern Traditions, which changed its name from Traditions FCU the first of the year and wracked up a loss of $3 million for 2007, one of the largest losses for a credit union its size. Most of the losses were attributed to the credit union’s subprime auto loan program. The credit union has been hard hit by the continuing decline by the American textile industry, it main employee base, and had a drop in assets form $44.8 million at year-end 2006 to $42.9 million at year-end 2007.
Docco Regional, which serves parts of 13 surrounding counties, has assets of almost $86 million and had net income of $900,000 in 2007.
