IRONDALE, Ala. and METAIRIE, La. – Corporate credit union mergers are coming fast and furious, the latest pairs Corporate America with Louisiana Corporate. The $172 million Louisiana Corporate and $881 million Corporate America, based in Alabama, will combine two Southeastern corporates that have similar cultures and philosophies, according to the CEOs. Corporate America CEO Thomas Bonds and Louisiana Corporate CEO Dave Savoie have known one another for many years, and their personal familiarity with each other and their corporates made this deal easier to make. The two worked together at NCUA as corporate credit union examiners in Region III. "We've talked on and off over the years about a merger. This seemed to be a good fit, something that might benefit our members," said Savoie. Savoie, who has been a vocal supporter of small corporates being able to compete with the larger corporates, said he doesn't want this merger to give the impression that his views on small corporates have changed. "One of my biggest concerns is that this not be taken as small corporates can't stand alone, they can. They don't need to merge. In this particular case, the combination, I think, would be a better organization and make us more competitive. Our credit unions need all the competitive juice they can get," said Savoie. If the merger goes through, Corporate America will be the surviving name, with Louisiana Corporate operating as LaCorp, the Louisiana Division of Corporate America. Louisiana Corporate was the corporate most impacted by last year's devastating hurricanes. It had to operate out of its backup facility at U.S. Central for a few months due to damage to its facility in Metairie. Savoie said the financial impacts of the hurricanes have been minimal, and did not lead to this merger. "We've never been stronger. We have the top net income in the network. There is a lot of liquidity in the local area. With insurance settlements and FEMA assistance, PCA is one issue we've seen because some credit unions have grown so rapidly," said Savoie. Savoie said if this was a merger of necessity or for pure economies of scale, he could have simply shopped around to the largest corporates in the country. Savoie said the economies of scale story being told by some merging corporates doesn't really come into play here. He believes that is more of a factor when larger corporates are involved. Bonds doesn't consider Corporate America a large corporate, and that has its advantages, he said. "I think we're able to respond more quickly. We've done it with offering compliance and Corporate Financial Solutions," said Bonds, referring to the compliance and business services CUSOs the corporate has launched in response to member needs. The two corporates have a lot of synergies. They are both located in the same Fed district; they offer SimpliCD, and U.S. Central's OpenDoor and APEX products. Corporate America will offer Louisiana Corporate some additional services, such as image exchange and the CUSO offerings. Corporate America is already considering moving one of its check sorters to Louisiana to help in item processing. Louisiana Corporate cited its expertise in ACH services and its access to CNBS' expanded product line as things it brings to the merger. In any corporate CU merger, capital is always an issue. Does it get returned, or rolled over to the surviving corporate? "My basic philosophy is that it benefits the members whether you return it or keep it; it lowers cost of funds. Capital is going to benefit all the members," said Savoie. Both CEOs said the capital details have not yet been worked out. This is one of three pending corporate CU mergers. Empire Corporate and Mid-States, as well as WesCorp and VolCorp, are also in the merger process. [email protected]