Credit unions

The approval broadens Excel’s membership to anyone in Gwinnett, Hall, Forsyth and Fulton counties.

The leaders of the largest credit union trade groups are back on the road visiting members, and the organizations are also planning live conferences this year.

The combined company will operate under the Royal name and leadership.

Splash recently raised $44 million from investors. It plans to use the funds to aid small institutions that lack the resources to build their own loan platforms but are flush with deposits and looking for new lending opportunities.

MidUSA Credit Union in Middletown, Ohio, and Heartland Federal Credit Union in Dayton have combined to form MyUSA Credit Union, which will operate nine branches in the Miami Valley and hold roughly $350 million of assets.

The chief financial officer, Doug Fagan, will succeed Sundie Seefried, who is retiring.

Cannabis, though still illegal at the federal level, continues to inch into the financial mainstream. Small credit unions and lenders as large as Valley National and East West have moved beyond just taking deposits from marijuana companies.

Isaac Johnson had been running the organization on an interim basis.

Michigan Legacy Credit Union is increasing its minimum hourly wage by 23% to $16, adding annual costs that equal nearly half of its first-quarter profit. The expense is worth it to compete with banks that have boosted pay, its CEO says.

Acquiring Pilot Bank would allow the credit union to serve members who live or vacation in Florida. The deal is the fifth deal this year in which a credit union is purchasing a bank.