TALLAHASSEE, Fla. – The Florida Office of Financial Regulation last week approved the planned merger of Bay Gulf CU, an ailing one-time $220 million credit union, into MidFlorida CU, the state’s seventh-largest credit union with $1.4 billion in assets.
Bay Gulf, which has seen its assets dwindle to just $137 million, has run afoul of the poor economy of the Florida Gulf region and reported a $4.4 million loss for 2008, a $2.1 million loss for 2009 and a $945,000 loss for the first six months of 2010.
After the merger, Bay Gulf’s main office in Tampa and seven branch offices would be retained as branches of MidFlorida.
Bill DeMare, president and chief operating officer of Bay Gulf, won’t stay on, but he will have a three-year consulting agreement.
The deal already has the go-ahead from NCUA, but still needs the approval of Bay Gulf members, who are set to vote at a meeting Sept. 17.
