By Cary Shuman
Community Credit Union (CCU), which has a branch office in Lynn, will be merging with Rockland Federal Credit Union in March, 2026, pending approval by the members of the credit union.
The combined credit union will have nearly $3.6 billion in assets, operate as a division of Rockland FCU, and will serve more than 200,000 members across 12 Massachusetts branches.
A presence in Lynn since 1955
Thomas Demakis, general counsel for Community Credit Union and son of CCU founder Charles Demakis, said the long-standing financial institution dates to 1955 when it was founded by a group of Greek-American leaders in the community.
“In 1969, after it had been existence for 14 years, they changed the name from the Greek Community Credit Union to the Community Credit Union of Lynn,” said Demakis. “And that’s where it’s been ever since.”
Demakis said there was a Lynn branch for 50 years, “but in 2005 Community Credit Union opened a branch in Peabody, and in 2015 a branch was opened in Somerville. This year was the 70th anniversary of the founding of the credit union.”
Demakis said there is a challenging environment that exists today for smaller credit unions “because there are a lot of regulations, compliance requirements, and it takes a lot of money to make sure the credit union is in compliance and because of that, it limits the products and services we can offer the members.”
Noting CCU’s great legacy in the city of Lynn and on the North Shore, Demakis said the board has been considering a merger for the last two or three years after evaluating, “What can we do to strengthen the credit union [CCU] so we can continue to do the good work that it’s done and preserve its legacy and do an even better job for its members than it can as a small, independent credit union?”
“The board decided a merger would be the best thing to do,” said Demakis.
CCU officials reached out to other credit unions in Massachusetts and “half a dozen credit unions showed serious interest in a merger.”
“Ultimately the board voted unanimously to merge with Rockland Federal Credit Union, which has nine branch offices on the South Shore,” said Demakis. “They [RFCU] were interested in merging with us because they wanted to establish a presence on the North Shore, and they love what we do in the community and that we serve low-income and middle-income communities. That’s what they do, and they’d like to expand that footprint. We really share a lot of the same values, so we’re really excited about this merger.”
Ballots will be going out this week to all the members of CCU so they can vote on the merger. Demakis and CCU President and CEO Dr. Nick Sarantopoulos encourage all the members to vote in favor of the merger.
Sarantopoulos
articulates about “the
ideal partnership” for CCU
Sarantopoulos, who was honored as the Boston North CEO Group’s 2025 Member of the Year, said, “We had discussions with several credit unions because we wanted to find who would be the ideal partner for us, because it’s a partnership when you join forces and you combine your assets.”
Sarantopoulos said there were two major considerations in selecting a merger partner: “the business aspect which involved markets, products, and financials, and the cultural fit that we share the same values and the same focus, especially when it comes to community banking like serving families and small businesses, which has been our niche – especially immigrant-owned businesses.”
“So, it was great to see eye to eye and have a common vision because that gave us a lot of comfort that this is the best look for us,” added Sarantopoulos. “A credit union is owned by its members and eventually the members vote on the decision to merge because the credit union is not ours, it’s theirs. It’s the members we serve.”
Reflecting on Community Credit Union’s 70-year history and its excellent reputation, Demakis recalled proudly, “My father had Account No. 1 at the credit union.”
The late founder Charles Demakis’ photo is displayed prominently on the wall at Community Credit Union, noted Dr. Sarantopoulos.