COLORADO SPRINGS, Colo. — Ent Federal Credit Union here has now finalized its merger with Denver's troubled US Alliance Credit Union following US Alliance members' approval of the merger by vote at a special meeting in early April. The merger had already won the stamp of approval from both CU boards, the Colorado Division of Financial Services and the National Credit Union Administration.

Jim Moore, senior vice president of Ent told Credit Union Times that, "we're taking the portfolio as it exists. There's been no separate deal, and nothing is going to NCUA." Moore was referring to the sale of home equity loans prior to the purchase and acquisition of Cal State 9 Credit Union in Concord, Calif., by San Francisco-based Patelco Credit Union, where a portfolio of delinquent HELOC loans was sold before the deal was consummated.

"They [US Alliance] reserved significant amounts in their loan loss reserves at year-end," allowed Moore. According to NCUA filings, US Alliance then had assets of just over $59 million and reserved $8 million for losses, a 454.5% change from the previous quarter, when the CU set aside only $1.45 million. For the quarter recently ended in March, the loan loss reserve was a tad higher at $8,10 million. US Alliance had a net income loss of $236,680 at the end of March, but as Moore indicated, the bulk of losses were taken at year-end, when US Alliance posted a net income loss of $7.7 million.