Cincinnati-based First Financial scooped up Westfield Bank near Cleveland after Westfield's parent company decided to exit the bank space and focus on its core insurance business.

The Cincinnati bank aims to grow in northeast Ohio with the acquisition of Westfield. The deal is expected to boost First Financial to a $20.6 billion institution.

The CEOs of Bank of New York Mellon and Northern Trust have had at least one discussion about a potential merger, according to a Wall Street Journal article. On Monday, a spokesperson for Northern Trust said the bank "is fully committed to remaining independent."

President Donald Trump has signed a Congressional Review Act resolution that eliminates the Office of the Comptroller of the Currency's Biden-era rules requiring stricter reviews of bank mergers and a time-out clock for some institutions.

The bank's investors hope to see the small community bank in Utah transform and grow into "a minority-owned version of Ally," as board chair Ashley Bell put it.

Even as unpredictable trade policies slowed down mergers in other sectors, banks have kept inking M&A deals at the same pace, according to a new report.

Commerce Bancshares agreed to pay around $585 million to acquire FineMark Holdings. It's the Missouri bank's first bank deal in 12 years.

Some banks hope to use M&A as a way to play defense, either because they need to shore up their deposits or because they have aging CEOs and are looking for an exit. But investors aren't wild about the deal math.