The overall size of the combined entity is trivial compared to industry behemoths. It is evident the benefits to consumers from the Capital One-Discover merger dramatically exceed the speculated harms that caution against it.

A Northwest credit union announced plans this week to buy a community bank, lifting the 2024 total of such deals to 13 and putting the year on track to set a record. The all-time annual high of 16 was set in 2022.

The Chicago-area bank closed the fifth-largest deal announced this year in a matter of months. It may bode well for M&A, as several big transactions have been announced in 2024.

Specialized Portfolio Servicing's sale resolves questions about it that arose when UBS bought the troubled Credit Suisse last year.

KeyCorp wasn't seeking capital but saw the benefits of Scotiabank's minority stake. The deal would enable the Canadian lender to step into the U.S. consumer market.

The pace of deal activity in 2024 is ahead of a year earlier, thanks in large part to summer momentum and a spate of all-stock deals. But an early August market rout created a new hurdle for dealmaking in the second half of the year.

The parent company of Fulton Bank announced the creation of three new management roles and promoted existing employees into those jobs. The changes follow the recent hiring of an outsider to be CFO.

The resurgence of the syndicated loan market signals a pendulum swing back to greater reliance by debt issuers on traditional bank financing.

When banks realize they are unable to continue their operations, a credit union is often a natural partner to consider.

The KBW Nasdaq Bank Index was up 18% year to date through July, supporting expectations for more banks to use their shares as currency to take out competitors.

Despite the continuing trends of consolidation and limited startup activity, bankers and industry insiders say there is a path forward. But small lenders must evolve with changing technology.

The five largest bank M&A deals had an average deal value of more than $1.2 billion.

The Kansas City, Missouri-based regional bank said it is making progress on its pending purchase of Heartland Financial USA in Denver. The deal is expected to close during the first quarter of 2025.

Capital One's proposed deal to acquire Discover is being viewed by progressives as a test of how skeptical the administration really is about big bank mergers, while Republican lawmakers mostly support the deal.

The $330 million transaction announced late Monday would give the Jasper-based company a foothold in fast-growing Columbus, as well as in Cincinnati.

The buyer said the all-stock deal to buy The First Bancshares would create a combined bank with $25 billion of assets.

Fulton Financial taps Valley National's Richard Kraemer as its new CFO; UBS' veteran private banker Jenny Su has left the firm; Bank of America names Kevin Brunner head of global technology, media and telecommunications investment banking; and more in this week's banking news roundup.

Friday's deal for Premier Financial ends a five-year M&A hiatus for the Wheeling, West Virginia-based company while marking its expansion into Michigan.

ChoiceOne Financial Services would pay about $180 million to acquire Fentura Financial in a bid to expand in Detroit's suburbs. The deal would create a bank with more than $4 billion of assets.

Third-party origination operations are also going to Mr. Cooper in the $1.4 billion deal, in which the seller cited interest in improving its capital position.