A year ago, Spire and Hiway credit unions partnered in a big way on a new business lending effort. Now, they’re planning to cement their partnership even further by merging into a single entity.

On Tuesday, Spire and Hiway announced their intent to merge into a combined credit union that would have total assets of nearly $4 billion and about 250,000 members. The new entity would become Minnesota’s fourth-largest credit union, Spire and Hiway said in a press release.

The release billed the deal as a “merger of equals” and said that both credit unions are “financially secure, similar in size, and share many values.”

The merger deal has already been approved by both credit unions’ boards, CEOs, and leadership teams. The National Credit Union Administration – which oversees credit unions in the U.S. – has signed off on the deal, too. All that’s left is approval from Hiway’s more than 90,000 members, according to the release. Hiway’s members are slated to vote on the deal on Sept. 13.

Spire members would not need to vote on the merger because technically Hiway would be merging into Spire, a spokesperson said in an email.

No layoffs are expected as a result of the merger. Spire president and CEO Dan Stoltz would become CEO of the new entity, while Hiway president and CEO Dave Boden would become its president.

“Our goal is to become the best credit union in the Midwest, by providing the absolute best service,” Stoltz said in the release. “Together, with everything both credit unions bring to the table, we know we can get there.”

The CEOs told the Star Tribune that they’ve hired Mollie Young Enterprises to develop a new name and brand for the combined entity.

Hiway and Spire were two of four credit unions that banded together under the United Financials Capital LLC banner in May 2022. The other two credit unions in that partnership are Affinity Plus and TopLine Federal.

The merger isn’t expected to have any immediate impacts on United Financials.

“United Financials Capital LLC will continue to operate with a focus on commercial lending through collaboration of multiple credit union owners,” a Spire spokesperson said via email. “In the future, the scope will expand to collaboration of other banking services, but for the time being, the emphasis will be on commercial lending.”

If the deal goes through, Apple Valley-based Wings Financial would remain the largest credit union in the state with about $8.5 billion in assets.

Editor’s note: On Sept. 14, the credit unions announced that 81.2% of Hiway’s members voted to approve the merger, which means the merger is now all but certain. The credit unions will legally merge as of Jan. 1, 2024, with a new name “to be announced later this year, “they said.