The Perfect Storm: CEO Retirements and Industry Consolidation Create Strategic Succession Opportunity

What if your credit union could achieve better economies of scale and find the perfect CEO to lead your organization in the future?

Lake Tapps, WA – Credit unions face a perfect storm: half of CEOs are over 55 years old while the industry consolidates toward fewer than 3,000 institutions by 2040. A new whitepaper from CEO Advisory Group—“Strategic Succession: The Case for Merger-Driven CEO Transitions,” available for complimentary download—reveals how strategic mergers during CEO succession can solve both challenges while delivering superior member value.

With new NCUA succession planning requirements taking effect January 1, 2026, it is the perfect time to include strategic mergers as part of your credit union’s succession planning process.

Scale Drives Member Value

The whitepaper shows how economies of scale translate directly to member benefits:

• Competitive rates: Larger institutions offer loan rates up to 145 basis points lower and deposit rates up to 55 basis points higher.
• Operational efficiency: Lower expense ratios create more resources for member services and competitive pricing.
• Growth trajectory: Institutions with greater scale show sustained membership growth of 5.40% annually.

This all adds up to a member value gap worth hundreds of dollars annually per household.

“The data is unambiguous—larger credit unions deliver 30-60 basis points of additional value to members through economies of scale,” says Glenn Christensen, CEO of CEO Advisory Group and author of the whitepaper.

This raises a critical question for boards: Could strategic succession planning deliver both exceptional leadership and transformational scale simultaneously?

The Succession-Merger Connection

The whitepaper identifies strategic mergers during succession planning as a powerful tool for achieving both exceptional leadership and better competitive positioning.

“When boards face CEO succession decisions, they must ask whether hiring even an exceptional leader can overcome these structural constraints, or whether there’s a better path forward,” says Christensen.

“Traditional succession planning asks ‘who should lead us?’ Strategic succession planning asks ‘what will best position us to deliver exceptional member value over the next 15 years?'” Christensen explains. “Merger-driven succession can simultaneously solve leadership challenges while achieving scale that would take decades through organic growth.”

Overcoming Merger Barriers

The research addresses common obstacles to merger consideration, including board governance concerns, executive team resistance, and cultural attachment to independence.

“The barriers are real but not insurmountable,” Christensen noted. “Credit unions that address these concerns proactively through proper planning and contractual protections often discover merger-based succession delivers far better outcomes than traditional hiring.”

“Strategic Succession: The Case for Merger-Driven CEO Transitions” is available for download at https://resources.ceoadvisory.com/strategic-succession-white-paper.html.