Casper’s WyoCentral Federal Credit Union to merge with Laramie-based StagePoint

CASPER, Wyo. — Casper’s WyoCentral Federal Credit Union announced recently that it will merge with Laramie-based StagePoint Federal Credit Union.

WyoCentral CEO Annie Sorensen said in an interview with Oil City News that the move comes as local credit union’s face mounting market and economic pressures, and will help ensure the survival and success of WyoCentral.

“It’s really a matter of positioning ourselves for the future and the long term, and making sure that we’re here in the future to service the members that have been with us for so long,” she said.

Sorensen said technology fees are among the most pressing issues for smaller institutions. “I core processing fee is a very large monthly fee, and you want to make sure that it’s going to the best place possible and not being wasted,” she said. “When you get a new ATM, that can be [up to] $40,000, and in the small credit union world, that’s big bite.”

“So when you join forces, you’re paying one fee to service two memberships, and as a small credit union it just makes sense to have allies and partners.”

WyoCentral has around 3,200 members, she said, while StagePoint currently has around 4,000 members. According to its website, WyoCentral formed in 1958, and currently employs 13 people. StagePoint traces its roots to 1935. Both have single branches, after WyoCentral closed their westside branch about one year ago.

Credit unions differ from large commercial banks in that they are not for profit organizations. “What we do is make sure any of the profit that we have goes back into our members, meaning that we have lower fees month-to-month, and sometimes no fees,” she said. There are no checking account fees, and they tend to offer lower interest rates on vehicles, and higher dividend rates for CDs and investments.

Sorensen said WyoCentral has been behind in offering new banking technology to its members, which she says will change under StagePoint and will help them stay up to date with card, internet and other banking trends. She also expects to grow into new areas of financing, particularly with the mortgage industry.

Sorensen said that members should still see the same personalized service they’ve come accustomed to. StagePoint CEO Tyler Valentine will serve as CEO of the merged credit unions, while she will serve as Vice President of the Casper operation. Valentine served as the Vice President of WyoCentral roughly 12 years ago and knows the culture, she said.

WyoCentral will rebrand as StagePoint, she said, and the merger is expected to be completed by early October.

“Our members have been asking me how I feel [about this], and I’m very confident and extremely excited,” she said. “I think this is the best way possible to secure the future of our members.”