In a survey last month, only one in 10 chief executives identified mergers as their top priority, while 77% pointed to organic growth. The sparse interest in dealmaking may be due to volatile markets, along with slower approvals from regulators.

M&T-People's closing date set, U.S. Bank's WNBA deal and more in banking news this week.

The deal for Horizon Community Bank in Arizona is the fifth instance of a credit union agreeing to buy a bank this year, and the second such deal for the Phoenix credit union, which bought Pinnacle Bank in 2019.

Citigroup, in the midst of overhauling its businesses in Russia when the country went to war, has seen efforts to sell a consumer banking unit there stall and is helping some employees transfer abroad.

Key advocacy organizations are negotiating a community benefits agreement with Minneapolis-based U.S. Bancorp. Until a deal is reached, they are vowing not to back approval of the $8 billion acquisition.

The sale of Partners Bancorp in Maryland to OceanFirst Financial in New Jersey was expected to be approved by midyear. But regulators' reviews of the applications are taking longer than expected, meaning the companies can no longer “give any assurance as to the timing” of the deal's completion, Partners says.

Newtek, the No. 2 originator of Small Business Administration 7(a) loans, is buying a single-branch bank in New York. The news sent its stock price tumbling as shareholders revolted, but CEO Barry Sloane is staying the course.

The $7.6 billion deal was originally expected to close in the fourth quarter of last year, but the banks had pushed back their deadline until June. Once the merger is complete, the combined bank will have more than $200 billion in assets.

The deal with HBI Employees Credit Union follows two other mergers Spire struck last year that brought it to $1.9 billion of assets.

The Louisiana-based Barksdale has agreed to purchase HomeBank of Arkansas. It is the fourth deal involving the sale of a bank to a credit union in less than two weeks.