CWJ credit union chasing fifth merger
Published:Tuesday | April 3, 2018 | 12:00 AM
Community & Workers of Jamaica Co-operative Credit Union Limited, CWJCCU, is chasing another merger, this time with St Elizabeth Co-operative Credit Union Limited, SECCU, whose members will vote their approval on April 28.
The tie-up would give CWJCCU a presence in its eighth parish and grow the branch network from 17 to 22. The credit union now represents some 78,000 members drawn from the tourism, telecoms, agriculture, bauxite, shipping and water resource sectors.
CWJCCU has merged with four other credit unions in the past seven years, the last of which occurred in October 2016 when it consumed the National Water Commission Co-operative Credit Union.
SECCU General Manager Fitzgerald Rowe and CWJCCU CEO Carlton Barclay both declined to comment on the merger ahead of the April 28 votes set to occur at separate meetings.
Barclay said his organisation was in the process of negotiating two mergers, which could position it as the largest credit union in Jamaica, if the talks end in agreement. CWJCCU's assets are currently estimated at around $11 billion to $12 billion.
He adds that while CWJCCU has no specific plan to expand to all 14 parishes, its goal is national coverage, either through mergers or service delivery through the use of technology.