SYRACUSE, N.Y. – Beacon Federal Bancorp, the-$680 million regional bank created by the combination of five one-time credit unions, agreed last week to be sold to Berkshire Hills Bancorp of Pittsfield, Mass., for $132 million.
Beacon, chartered in 1953 as Carrier Employees FCU to serve the erstwhile air conditioning giant, was one of the first credit unions to convert to mutual savings bank in July 1999. After that the ex-credit union acquired four smaller credit unions upon their conversions to mutual savings banks: Professional Teachers FCU, Caney Fork FCU, Salt City Hospital FCU, and earlier this year, Marcy FCU, creating a regional savings bank with a diverse branch network in Syracuse, Tennessee, Texas and Massachusetts.
Berkshire Bank currently has 1.4 billion in assets and 68 branches in Massachusetts, New York, Connecticut, and Vermont.
