San Jose, CA - Meriwest Credit Union, one of Silicon Valley's largest financial institutions, was recognized as a winner in the 2006 "Best Places to Work in the Bay Area" at a ceremony in San Francisco on Wednesday, April 5, 2006.

Over 400 companies were submitted for consideration and about a quarter of those received recognition. Employees were asked to complete a confidential survey to obtain their assessments on a wide variety of topics covering benefits, working conditions, corporate culture, etc.

They were then tabulated to determine rankings within the group. Meriwest ranked 35th in their size category, which was an outstanding result since this was the first time the financial institution participated in this award ceremony.

"This result reflects so well on each of our employees. People make an organization successful, not the other way around. Our employees hard work, spirited dedication and positive attitude make Meriwest the place it is today. With their continued support, suggestions, and 'can do' attitude we will improve even further each passing year," said Chris Owen, President and CEO of Meriwest Credit Union.

Meriwest Credit Union was officially chartered as the IBM San Jose Employees Federal Credit Union to primarily serve the employees of IBM and their relatives. In 1999, Meriwest received approval to add Santa Clara and Alameda counties to its membership base and changed its name to Meriwest Credit Union.

Recently, Meriwest acquired Silicon Valley Credit Union and continued its trend of strong growth and increased its assets and membership base with this merger. As a result of the merger, Meriwest surpassed $1 billion in assets and expanded its presence in the Bay Area Peninsula as they acquired and converted Silicon Valley Credit Union's locations in Mountain View, Palo Alto (2), and Menlo Park to Meriwest Credit Union financial centers.

Meriwest Credit Union delivers value to any individual and small business in the Greater Bay Area and Tucson, Arizona that is looking for above market rates on deposits, low loan rates, lower fees, product options and an experience that makes a member feel good about doing business with the financial institution.

As an established and proactive full-service financial institution, Meriwest is dedicated to making life easier for businesses and families in the San Francisco Bay Area and Tucson, Arizona through personal, convenient and innovative financial services.