Two St. Louis area credit unions have officially tied the knot, creating a roughly $670 million institution that will serve about 43,000 members across the region. West Community Credit Union and Gateway Metro Federal Credit Union are combining under the West Community name, with Jason Peach set to lead the expanded cooperative.
In an announcement on its blog, West Community described the move as a strategic partnership aimed at expanding services and branch access for members. The combined organization will operate as West Community Credit Union, and Peach will remain at the helm. “This is not about one credit union absorbing another,” Peach said in a statement, according to West Community Credit Union.
Assets, members and timeline
As CU Today has reported, West Community held about $491 million in assets and Gateway Metro about $173 million before the deal, figures that add up to roughly $664 million and closely track the combined total the credit unions are using in merger communications. In all, the merged institution will manage nearly $670 million in assets and serve more than 43,000 members, with a full systems integration scheduled for October, according to the St. Louis Business Journal.
Regulatory sign-off
The transaction cleared a key milestone when the Missouri Division of Credit Unions approved the proposed merger late last year, the state’s electronic bulletin shows. That sign-off removed a primary regulatory hurdle and allowed the two cooperatives to begin planning joint operations and an integration timeline, according to the Missouri Division of Credit Unions.
Why it matters
The tie-up fits into a broader wave of strategic consolidation among credit unions as institutions seek scale for technology, compliance and product investment. Industry reporting notes that merger activity accelerated in late 2025 and into 2026 as healthy, growth minded cooperatives chose to combine in order to reach critical scale, according to CU Today.
What members should expect
For members, the immediate takeaway is that day-to-day banking should look pretty familiar for now. Both credit unions will keep running on their current platforms until the planned October integration, and staff say branch locations and account access will remain in place during the transition. Gateway Metro’s member newsletter has urged account holders to verify their contact information as the organizations prepare for the conversion, according to the credit union’s January newsletter, Gateway Metro Federal Credit Union.
