MEMPHIS, Tenn. (May 16, 2024) — Orion Federal Credit Union (“Orion”) today announced its President and CEO Daniel Weickenand will retire at the end of 2024. Weickenand has requested the Board of Directors move forward with the company’s CEO succession plan and internal organizational shifts to continue the strategic growth of Orion. The Orion Board of Directors will announce a successor in the coming weeks.
Under Weickenand’s leadership, Orion has grown to be the largest credit union in west Tennessee with more than 70,000 members and $1.2 billion in assets.
Weickenand began as President and CEO in 2010 of Memphis Area Teacher Credit Union (MATCU), which was under financial hardship. His management expertise in turning around distressed financial institutions proved invaluable. In 2011, under Weickenand’s leadership MATCU became Orion Federal Credit Union. Weickenand recalls, “When I took over Orion, formerly Memphis Area Teacher’s Credit Union, the institution was failing and had let down many in our community. I wanted to start over with the idea of community investment, because a better Memphis would mean a better Orion.” Even during challenging times, Weickenand is optimistic about Memphis’s future.
“Orion has achieved exponential success under the leadership of Daniel Weickenand. His ability to turn around a failing business and build it into an innovative financial institution is only as impressive as Orion’s impact on our community during his tenure,” stated Orion Board Chairman Andre Fowlkes.
Over the years Orion has donated millions of dollars and supported well over 100 community non-profits that bring all walks of Memphians together making impacts in the mid-south.
In 2022, Orion received $105 million, one of the largest awards of the Emergency Capital Investment (ECIP) funding from the U.S. Department of Treasury. “This ECIP award has allowed us to leverage our existing capital and continue Orion’s commitment to this city by generating strategic investment of loans in low to moderate income neighborhoods that provide affordable housing,” stated Weickenand.
In 2015, he negotiated a deal to build an Orion branch in Memphis’ Medical District. The LEED Silver® facility, located across the street from Le Bonheur Children’s Hospital, was constructed on a remediated brownfield site, which was once a dilapidated gas station. Weickenand stated, “We wanted to go beyond reactivating a dead street corner. We wanted to build something that members and the neighborhood would be proud of, and even more, would reflect the change and evolution going on in the area.” Orion was the first financial institution located in the Medical District in over 20 years.
A few years later in 2019, Weickenand moved Orion’s headquarters to the former Wonder Bread facility, left vacant since 2013. Weickenand recognized an opportunity to address long-term blight and drive economic development by rebuilding the Edge neighborhood connecting Downtown to the Medical District. “The Orion HQ development was a powerful catalyst to end blight in the Edge neighborhood,” said Weickenand. “A strong city core creates a ripple effect for development and energy throughout the region.”
As a trusted industry professional, he served as a board member for the National Association of Federal Credit Unions and the Advisory Board for Corelation, a financial software company. He is frequently invited to speak at industry conferences as a featured expert on credit union growth strategies and has testified before the U.S. Congress. Over the years, he has served the community in numerous capacities supporting growth in Memphis. In 2018, Weickenand was named CEO of the Year by Inside Memphis Business. That same year, Weickenand was ranked top ten in the nation for his fundraising efforts supporting the American Cancer Society’s Real Men Wear Pink which focuses on breast cancer research and support.
“Orion’s experienced leadership team, healthy financial position, and strategic plan will carry the organization through the transition. I look forward to working with the Board on a seamless handoff to my successor,” stated Weickenand.
ABOUT ORION
Founded in Memphis in 1957, Orion Federal Credit Union has grown to become the largest credit union in the Mid-South with 70,000 members and more than $1 billion in assets. Orion offers a full spectrum of banking options ranging from savings and checking accounts to auto, home, personal and commercial real estate loans. As a member-owned financial institution, Orion’s profits are passed along to members through higher deposit rates, lower loan rates, and affordable financial services that help pave the way to financial freedom. Orion takes seriously its responsibility to support the communities it serves. Bank anytime, anywhere at OrionFCU.com. Orion is an equal housing lender and insured by the NCUA.
