Banking & Business
Gulf Winds Credit Union is expanding again. CEO and President Daniel Souers announced on the “We Don’t Color on the Dog” podcast that the Pensacola-based credit union has acquired People’s Exchange Bank in Monroeville, its second bank acquisition of 2026.
- The deal closes just 30 days after Gulf Winds announced its acquisition of a bank in Madison County, where the credit union’s new TrueWorth brand name was first rolled out. Souers said the back-to-back timing wasn’t accidental.
“You’re going to build systems, you’re going to plan everything out, you’re going to have the operational team all spun up. Let’s do one and then the other.”
What Gulf Winds is buying. People’s Exchange Bank has served Monroeville since 1907. Souers said Gulf Winds’ branch sits two minutes from the bank’s, giving his team a close-up view of the institution’s community relationships before pursuing the deal.
- The acquisition also solves a real estate problem. Gulf Winds’ current Monroeville branch is small and outgrows its parking lot, while People’s Exchange operates out of a three-story building Souers called “very beautiful.”
What it means for customers on both ends.
- People’s Exchange customers gain access to Gulf Winds’ digital banking technology and the ability to bank across three regions instead of one
- Pensacola-market members gain immediate access to commercial and small-business banking expertise Gulf Winds didn’t previously have in-house
- No immediate operational disruption for current Gulf Winds members—integration work happens behind the scenes
Filling a gap members had been asking about. Souers said commercial banking has been a recurring request from members who do that side of their business elsewhere. “When are you guys gonna get into commercial banking? Because we wanna do our work with you,” he said members have told him repeatedly.
- Rather than build that expertise from scratch—a process he estimated could take five years—Gulf Winds is buying it, gaining the deeper bench that both the Madison County and Monroeville deals bring.
