OCM, A Division of Doeren Mayhew LogoDoeren Mayhew today announced a merger with credit union CPA firm Orth, Chakler, Murnane & Company (OCM). The merger combines two of the nation’s top credit union auditing firms as ranked by Callahan & Associates’ “2015 Supplier Market Share Guide: Credit Union Auditors.”

Founded in 1996, OCM has been solely dedicated to assisting credit unions and credit union service organizations in meeting their auditing and consulting needs. The firm has seven partners and nearly 60 professionals, all of whom will continue with the combined organization. OCM’s co-founders, Douglas Orth, Hugh Chakler and John Murnane, as well as the firm’s four other partners, Daniel Moulton, James Griner, Lori Carmichael and Jack Kenney, will continue their current roles as shareholders within Doeren Mayhew’s Financial Institutions Group.

Effective Oct. 1, 2015, OCM will enter into a transition phase operating as Orth, Chakler, Murnane & Company, A Doeren Mayhew Firm. The combined firm will operate from five offices located in Michigan, Florida, Texas and North Carolina. In addition, Doeren Mayhew will have professionals located in 12 cities across the nation to meet local and regional needs of credit union clients.

“Merging with a firm of OCM’s talent and niche expertise reflects Doeren Mayhew’s continuing investment in the financial institutions industry,” said Mark Crawford, chairman of Doeren Mayhew. “It also allows us to expand our local presence in Florida and Texas, which has been part of Doeren Mayhew’s long-term multi-region growth strategy.”

As a result of the merger, Doeren Mayhew’s Financial Institutions Group will grow to more than 80 employees, including 13 shareholders with an average of over 25 years of credit union experience, to help service the firm’s financial institution clients in nearly 40 states across the nation. Combined, the group will offer audit, internal audit, regulatory compliance, information technology assurance, and merger and collaboration services to more than 350 financial institutions and credit union service organizations.

Based on this year’s rankings of Callahan & Associates’ market share report, the combined group will be a top-two provider to the credit union industry. Servicing more than 40 credit unions exceeding $1 billion in asset size, Doeren Mayhew will command nearly 18 percent of market share related to the nation’s largest credit unions.

“As skilled competitors for 20 years, the two firms have a mutual strategic vision of the future for our clients, staff and shareholders. Our combined synergies and extensive intellectual resources will allow us to deliver industry insight and risk management methodologies guided by a team of shareholders with more technical knowledge and experience in the credit union sector than any other CPA firm in the nation,” said Robin D. Hoag, shareholder in Doeren Mayhew’s Financial Institutions Group. “With human resources strategically located throughout the United States, we are able to support a national practice delivering cost effective audit, IT assurance, compliance, internal audit services and more.”

OCM’s co-founder and managing partner, Doug Orth, said, “For our clients, this news means access to the consolidated resources of two of the nation’s top credit union auditing and advisory firms, and an expanded suite of professional services critical to an industry that continues to grow in terms of asset size, complexity and expectations.”

To learn more about the merger and the capabilities of our combined Financial Institutions Group, click here.