LGFCU and SECU Look Toward the Future

Maurice Smith

One of the most successful cooperative partnerships in the credit union industry may soon come to an end, as Local Government Federal Credit Union (LGFCU) announced this week it is exploring steps to operate independently of State Employees’ Credit Union (SECU) and directly serve its membership.

A Supreme Court decision in 1979 required SECU to expel local government employees from its field of membership. Not to be deterred and to preserve access to affordable financial services for these employees, SECU assisted LGFCU in obtaining a federal charter in 1983. At that time, LGFCU and SECU entered into an agreement where LGFCU members are served through SECU’s branch network and contact center, while SECU also provides much of LGFCU’s operational infrastructure. This remarkable relationship has proven quite valuable over the years, and today LGFCU serves nearly 400,000 members and is quickly approaching $4 billion in assets.

Despite this success, LGFCU’s Board of Directors, with concurrence from SECU’s Board of Directors, views this exploration as a natural and mutually beneficial step toward ensuring the best interests of both the LGFCU and SECU members, now and into the future.

Maurice Smith, Chief Executive Officer of LGFCU, says, “Believe it or not, becoming operationally independent from SECU was contemplated in LGFCU’s early days. LGFCU is now well-suited to consider this transformative journey toward independence. We have a very exciting future – serving our members directly through our own delivery channels and offering a suite of products and services targeted to meet the specific needs of our membership.” Smith further remarked, “Our relationship with SECU has demonstrated the cooperative philosophy in action; SECU has been a tremendous partner in not only encouraging and supporting LGFCU from the beginning, but also recognizing and supporting our new vision.”
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SECU CEO Jim Hayes says, “While it’s been a privilege to serve LGFCU’s members over the years, we fully support LGFCU’s exploration of this new direction. These discussions are an acknowledgment of decades of hard work by both organizations to better serve the interests of unique fields of membership. I’m excited that LGFCU has the opportunity to control its own destiny. This decision by LGFCU’s Board will also allow SECU to focus on enhancing our value proposition to our membership.” Hayes added, “Together, we have created major and sustainable impacts on the lives of countless North Carolinians. We will continue to do so, but perhaps in a different business model.”

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