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Buyer: Capital One (COF)
Target: ING Direct
Date: 6/16/11
Price tag: $9B

Costs soared at Capital One in the first quarter partly because of M&A expenses from this hard-fought deal and another one, but CEO Richard Fairbank has said gaining ING Direct's "very, very loyal customer franchise" and online expertise will prove a worthy investment.

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Buyer: BMO Financial Group (BMO)
Target: Marshall & Ilsley
Date: Dec. 17, 2010
Price tag: $5.8 billion

Investors have second-guessed him at times, but BMO Chief Executive William Downe had good news in March, predicting that the cost savings from the $4 billion acquisition are ahead of schedule and should be $50 million higher than initially forecast. (Image: Bloomberg News)

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Buyer: PNC (PNC)
Target: RBC Bank USA
Date: 6/19/11
Price tag: $3.5B

PNC Chief Executive James Rohr said the integration of the deal, completed in March, was "off to a great start" despite cost challenges and that it could take two to three years to realize the full benefits.

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Buyer: Hancock Holding (HBHC)
Target: Whitney Holding
Date: 12/21/10
Price tag: $1.8B

Hancock has agreed to pay nearly $7 million to settle a Whitney overdraft suit this year and reported that higher M&A expenses hurt earnings in the first quarter. Still, the deal did more than double its assets and CEO Carl Chaney has promised that Hancock will eventually be "the envy of the financial institutions arena." (Image: Michael Chu)

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Buyer: Mitsubishi UFJ Financial Group
Target: Pacific Capital (PCBC)
Date: 3/9/12
Price tag: $1.5B

Pacific Capital and its majority owner, Texas financier Gerald Ford, got an offer they could not refuse — the third most lucrative deal in terms of tangible book value since the beginning of 2010. (Image: Bloomberg News)

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Buyer: First Niagara (FNFG)
Target: NewAlliance
Date: 8/18/10
Price tag: $1.5B

The NewAlliance deal gave First Niagara, led by John Koelmel, the No. 6 in deposit share in Connecticut. It planned to open at least five new branches in Connecticut this year to go along with the six it is acquiring in the state from HSBC Bank USA. (Image: Bloomberg News)

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Buyer: Comerica (CMA)
Target: Sterling Bancshares
Date: 1/16/11
Price tag: $1B

Comerica CEO Ralph Babb drew many raised eyebrows when he made this deal, but it has looked better over time as the Texas market has strengthened and other buyers have paid relatively high prices for banks in the Lone Star State.

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Buyer: Prosperity (PB)
Target: American State
Date: 1/12/12
Price tag: $529M

Prosperity's offer was seen as relatively safe because American State had strong loans and profits; Prosperity CEO David Zalman says his bank has the resources to do more deals. (Image: Michael Chu)

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Buyer: Hilltop Holdings (HTH)
Target: PlainsCapital
Date: 5/08/12
Price: $527M

Hilltop, led by investor Gerald Ford, got a good deal for PlainsCapital when if offered 1.3x tangible book for the Dallas bank, experts said. (Image: ThinkStock)

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Buyer: People's United Financial (PBCT)
Target: Danvers Bancorp
Date: 1/20/11
Price tag: $489M

People's United, led by Jack Barnes, has done several deals to beef up in Massachusetts and New York; it recently announced plans to buy 56 New York branches of Citizens Financial Group and open branches in the Boston area.

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