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Whitefish Credit Union announced Thursday that it received approval from the Division of Banking and Financial Institutions of the State of Montana to expand its field of membership to include 16 additional counties, effective immediately.
In addition, the $1.9 billion, Whitefish, Mont.-based credit union said its Board of Directors unanimously approved and ratified the new charter that was required for the field of membership expansion.
Whitefish CU previously served nine Montana counties, which covered the state’s greater northwest region and the Missoula, Helena and Bozeman, Mont., areas. The total population of those nine counties – Broadwater, Flathead, Gallatin, Lake, Lewis and Clark, Lincoln, Missoula, Ravalli and Sanders – is approximately 562,000, according to U.S. Census Bureau data.
Now, Whitefish CU membership is also open to individuals and businesses who live, work, operate, own property, worship, participate in an association or attend school in the following 16 counties: Beaverhead, Big Horn, Deer Lodge, Granite, Jefferson, Madison, Meagher, Mineral, Carbon, Cascade, Park, Powell, Silver Bow, Stillwater, Sweet Grass and Yellowstone. In total, the population of these 16 counties is approximately 400,000, and they include the metro areas of Billings (Yellowstone County), Butte (Silver Bow County) and Great Falls (Cascade County).
With a population of 170,843, according to the U.S. Census Bureau, one of Whitefish CU’s new counties of service, Yellowstone, is the state’s most populous. Previously, the most populous county in Montana it served was Gallatin (126,409), where the city of Bozeman is located.
Whitefish CU said its updated, 25-county field of membership now includes areas representing approximately 85% of Montana’s population. The largely rural state has a total of 56 counties.
“We see this membership expansion as an important milestone in advancing Whitefish Credit Union’s mission and growth plan,” Whitefish CU President/CEO James Kenyon said. “We’ve consistently heard from individuals and businesses in these communities who want to be part of our cooperative. This expansion gives us the opportunity to serve them directly, with the trusted, member-first approach that has defined Whitefish Credit Union for generations.”
According to NCUA data, the seven physical branches operated by Whitefish are located in the cities of Polson (Lake County), Eureka (Lincoln County), Thompson Falls (Sanders County), and Whitefish, Columbia Falls and Kalispell (all in Flathead County). Last year, it began building an eighth branch in Missoula. The credit union currently serves about 63,000 members.
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