Consolidations

The CEO of Keefe, Bruyette & Woods, a top matchmaker for bank mergers, explains why large banks will soon return to dealmaking after a long absence, the case for starting new banks and the enduring value of branches.

While industry consolidation remains slow compared with previous years, certain regions are humming along with strong volume and improved pricing. Here’s a look at each region based on June 30 data from KBW and S&P Global Market Intelligence.

The $487 million deal would be OceanFirst's fourth, and largest, acquisition in its home state since 2015.

Higher dividends and more aggressive repurchase programs are bound to attract more investors, which could boost stock prices and prompt more dealmaking, analysts said.

JPMorgan Chase has some advice for regional banks: A deposit drain is coming, so merge while you can.

The biggest bank M&A agreement of the year might not have happened if the buyer, Sterling Financial, had refused to prove to Astoria Financial that it had thoroughly vetted the deal with regulators.

The number of U.S. banks has fallen by 24% since the end of 2010, a result of mergers, failures and a dearth of de novo activity. Here are the 10 states with the biggest declines as a percentage of total banks headquartered in the state, according to Federal Deposit Insurance Corp. data.

It took several offers for First Busey to seal a deal to buy First Community Financial Partners, and the details in a recent public filing of the back and forth between the two Illinois banks show how patience in merger negotiations is a must.