ELKHART, Ind.—The members of Elcose FCU here have voted to merge with nearby INOVA FCU.
The merger will take effect on Feb. 14, after 65% of voting members elected to move ahead with the consolidation in an October referendum.
Dallas Bergl, president and CEO of INOVA, emphasized the $298 million credit union's 70-plus-year history of serving the Elkhart community, and said in a statement that the transition will be a positive experience for members of the absorbed credit union.
"With INOVA, Elcose members will continue to have access to all of the benefits of credit union membership/ownership that they enjoyed with Elcose. But they'll also be able to take advantage of many more products and services that are available to INOVA members."
Elcose, a $13 million credit union, will close its office on South Main Street as a result of the merger; another branch office closed at the end of October. The credit union earned $17,583 during the first three quarters of 2014, and has just $6 million in loans on the books, more than half of which is concentrated in used auto lending and mortgages. It had a net income of just $1,500 last year, and carried a loss of more than $6,000 in 2012.
INOVA's net income for 2014 was $147,000 during the first three quarters, following net earnings of $1.36 million in 2013.
