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A financial institution with long-standing ties to Wake Forest University has gained naming rights for the school's football stadium.
Wake Forest announced Wednesday morning that it had reached a "long-term" agreement with Allegacy Federal Credit Union that will include the renaming of the football stadium from Truist Field to Allegacy Federal Credit Union Stadium.
The terms and length of the deal were not disclosed, though the announcement described it as the largest corporate partnership in school history.
On Tuesday, Wake announced that Truist would no longer hold naming rights, but would become the presenting sponsor for its women's sports and offer a range of off-the-field opportunities for its athletes. Truist will also be an official banking partner of Wake Forest athletics.
As part of its deal, Allegacy will also become an official banking partner of Wake athletics, the exclusive credit union of Wake athletics, the official wealth management advisors of Wake athletics and the exclusive banking partner of Wake football.
Allegacy will become Wake's preferred student-athlete financial education provider, providing financial experts to assist Wake student-athletes with general financial matters and education.
Allegacy Stadium has a capacity of 31,500 for football.
Wake and Allegacy share a common origin in Winston-Salem. The university's Reynolda campus was originally part of the estate of R.J. and Katharine Reynolds; Allegacy was founded in 1967 as the Reynolds Carolina Credit Union to serve RJR employees.
"Allegacy CEO Cathy Pace and I share a strong commitment to the wellbeing and future of the Winston-Salem community and our region," said Susan R. Wente, Wake Forest's president. "I want to thank her and Allegacy's board of directors and executive leadership team for their deep collaboration and engagement throughout this process as we announce this historic agreement today. Allegacy's strategic investment in partnership with Wake Forest will support the continued success of both organizations, and provide new, exciting opportunities for Wake Forest students and employees."
The university and Atrium Health Wake Forest Baptist Medical Center have been longtime members of Allegacy's Select Employee Group.
The Allegacy Center for Leadership and Character at Wake's School of Business accelerates the school's mission to develop leaders of character to serve the greater good through a proven track record of thought leadership, practical relevance, and partnership across Wake Forest and the broader community.
"Allegacy and Wake Forest continue to be aligned in mission, ideals and principles," said Pace, a member of Wake's School of Business Board of Visitors. "Our approach to wellbeing is holistic in offering financial products and services that help our members be their best selves. With this ongoing partnership, we are each building on a proud legacy and a commitment to innovation in education and wellnes
Independent Sports and Entertainment (ISE) assisted in the development of the naming rights and new partnership agreement between Allegacy and Wake Forest.
"This is a unique opportunity to deepen a partnership which has impacted hundreds of thousands of people across our Winston-Salem community and beyond over the past two decades," said John Currie, Wake director of athletics.
"This agreement will allow for more financial education for our players to help them create promising futures. I appreciate the thoughtful approach our administration and Allegacy's leadership put forth into this partnership to help enhance the entire community," said Dave Clawson, Wake's football coach.
Allegacy is one of the largest credit unions in North Carolina, serving more than 175,000 members worldwide with $2.2 billion in assets and more than $1.5 billion in assets under management in Allegacy Investment Group.
Allegacy has 18 locations across the Triad and Charlotte areas, and nine high school student-run credit unions. Allegacy offers personal and business financial services to its members, including the employees, retirees, and families of more than 5,000 companies throughout the country.