Ascend Federal Credit Union and LGE Community Credit Union are gearing up for a major shake-up in the Southeast’s banking landscape, announcing Monday that they plan to merge into a single, member-owned institution with more than $7 billion in assets and roughly 390,000 members across Tennessee and Georgia. Under the plan, the combined credit union would keep the Ascend name, with Matt Jernigan staying on as president and CEO, while LGE President Chris Leggett moves into an executive leadership role. The deal still needs regulatory approval and a vote by LGE members, and the organizations are targeting a legal effective date in late Q4 2026 or early Q1 2027.
In a press release from Ascend Federal Credit Union, the Middle Tennessee institution reports about 265,000 members and more than $4.7 billion in assets. LGE, based in Marietta, lists around 125,000 members and approximately $2.3 billion in assets. Together, the two say they would bring in about 950 employees and more than 40 branch locations. The announcement leans hard on the idea that bigger will not mean colder, with both leaders stressing local service and a member-first culture. “Both organizations share a deep commitment to member‑first service and community impact,” Jernigan said in the release.
LGE Community Credit Union calls the planned merger a “thoughtful step forward,” pitching it as a way to give members more access to branches, ATMs, and digital tools without losing the neighborhood feel. The Marietta-based credit union highlights its 75-year history of community outreach, notes that both boards have already backed the plan, and promises ongoing updates as the process moves along.
What Members and Employees Can Expect
For now, day-to-day life is supposed to stay pretty uneventful for account holders. The credit unions say members will continue to have normal access to their accounts, and all deposits will remain federally insured while the merger marches through approvals. Both institutions also emphasize that they are committed to retaining employees across the combined organization, a point many staffers will likely read twice.
Final authorization still hinges on regulatory review and signoff, along with an affirmative vote by LGE members before closing. The National Credit Union Administration maintains the public record of merger approvals and related guidance, so this deal will eventually show up in that pipeline if it clears the early hurdles. The institutions add that systems integration is expected to stretch into 2027, with specific implementation details to be shared with members ahead of any changes that hit their accounts or local branches.
Where This Fits in the Bigger Picture
Industry watchers say this move is part of a broader trend in the credit union world, where institutions look to bulk up so they can afford modern digital platforms, rising compliance costs, and new product development, even as overall merger counts bounce around from year to year. Recent industry analyses and white papers have flagged that while the number of mergers shifts, the average size of the credit unions involved and the total assets being combined have climbed, as larger surviving organizations consolidate resources to stay competitive and invest in technology.
Timeline and Next Steps
Both boards have already given the green light to the plan, and the two credit unions say they are still aiming for a legal effective date in late Q4 2026 or early Q1 2027, with technical and systems integration work continuing into 2027. Members of LGE will receive information about the required member vote, including how and when to weigh in. The organizations say they will keep communities in the loop as regulatory reviews move forward and as member balloting gets underway; see Ascend Federal Credit Union for the full public statement.
Local business coverage of the announcement is available from the Nashville Business Journal, which first reported details of the planned partnership on April 27. Both credit unions say they will continue outreach to members and community partners as the merger process unfolds.
