Federal credit unions push Ottawa to fix merger and capital rules
Tru Cooperative Bank, formerly First West Credit Union, became federally regulated in April and currently serves approximately 290,000 members with approximately $21 billion in total assets and assets under administration.
In September, it announced a proposed merger with Ontario’s Libro Credit Union that would create an organization serving approximately 470,000 members with nearly $33 billion in combined assets, subject to member and regulatory approvals.
The case for a stronger middle tier
Canada’s national residential mortgage market carries more than $2.4 trillion in outstanding debt, according to Canada Mortgage and Housing Corporation (CMHC) data for December 2025, yet most credit unions remain regionally concentrated.
“Canada needs more institutions between those two ends of the market,” Skinner wrote — cooperatives with national capabilities and the local accountability that distinguishes them from publicly traded banks.
The appetite to fill that gap is already visible at the lender level. At MortgageFest Canada 2026, Bekim Merdita, head of sales and marketing at QuestBank, formerly Community Trust, described the institution’s positioning.
