The biggest bank M&A deals in 2021 — so far

U.S. Bancorp’s planned acquisition of MUFG Union Bank will be the first major test of the Biden administration’s pledge to scrutinize major bank mergers more carefully.

A regulatory run-in for Union Bank revealed just before the deal was announced and some reshuffling coming atop the Federal Reserve Board has led experts to believe the approval may not be swift.

Still, should the deal for Union Bank in San Francisco go through, Minneapolis-based U.S. Bancorp would receive a boost in the California market, where executives think it can compete with bigger rivals.

Another wrinkle to the sale by Tokyo-based Mitsubishi UFJ Financial Group is that it’s the latest move by a foreign company seeking to unload its U.S. retail banking operations. Foreign-owned banks have traditionally lagged industry averages on key profitability metrics, and several of them have recently headed for the exits.

M&T’s pending purchase of People’s United in Bridgeport, Connecticut, marks the company’s first bank acquisition in six years and the first under Chairman and CEO René Jones. The deal would not only expand the Buffalo, New York-based company’s footprint in New England, but also add business lines such as equipment finance to M&T’s portfolio.

Shareholders of both companies approved the acquisition in May. In July, M&T made public its post-acquisition layoff plans, including 747 job cuts in Bridgeport, Connecticut, and subsequently faced a wave of backlash from community members and government officials who said they were caught off guard by the number of layoffs.

M&T moved quickly to make assurances about its commitment to the region, pledging to retain approximately 80% of People’s United workforce, including all 1,068 customer-facing employees. It also promised to employ at least 1,000 people in Bridgeport within a year after the systems conversion that’s scheduled to take place in February 2022. M&T said it would turn People’s United’s Bridgeport headquarters into M&T’s New England regional headquarters.

Webster Financial in Waterbury, Connecticut, is looking to scale up in the Northeast by acquiring Sterling Bancorp in Pearl River, New York.

Even before the deal was announced, both banks had been looking for ways to expand beyond their current markets in the slow-growing Northeast.

Webster is the largest bank operating in the health savings account market, which generates lots of low-cost deposits, while Sterling has historically focused on national businesses such as asset-based lending and equipment finance.

Executives expect the combined company to keep the Webster name and establish a new corporate headquarters in Stamford, Connecticut, while also maintaining offices in Waterbury and the greater New York City market. John Ciulla plans to remain president and CEO of Webster following the merger.