The Federal Reserve Board signed off on Provident Financial Services' acquisition of Lakeland Bancorp. The newly combined bank will be the seventh largest in the state.

Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer, D-N.Y., said that he would like to examine the proposed acquisition on "narrower bases."

Any approval of the proposed Capital One-Discover merger must come with a pro-competitive 1% interchange fee condition to benefit consumers and small businesses and challenge the dominating duopolist Visa, and a pro-community 5% deposit reinvestment condition.

Based on the pace of deals through late March, the banking industry is on track for the most branch sales since 2021. Buyer interest has mounted alongside the need to acquire deposits, following hits to funding bases last year.

The federal agency's director said Wednesday that regulators were working to refocus bank merger evaluations on community impact.

Banking regulators and the Department of Justice must decide whether the blockbuster deal raises antitrust concerns. Looming over their analyses are questions about how broadly or narrowly to define the relevant markets.

Houston-based Prosperity Bancshares said it closed its purchase of Lone Star State Bancshares about a year later than initially planned.

The Evansville, Indiana bank named an interim chief financial officer after Brendon Falconer was charged with child molestation.

Mergers have left Virginia without an independent statewide financial institution. Atlantic Union CEO John Asbury is trying to change that.

Last year, the Raleigh, N.C.-based Integrated called off a deal to sell itself to MVB Financial after bank stocks took a hit in the aftermath of the regional bank failures. Capital hopes to expand its government-guaranteed lending with the transaction.

VersaBank in London, Ontario, agreed nearly two years ago to buy a small Minnesota bank. The buyer's CEO says he remains hopeful approval will come soon.

The credit card giant says that it is "proactively meeting" with advocacy organizations to gather feedback that would help with the creation of a community benefits plan. The National Community Reinvestment Coalition, which has negotiated 21 such deals since 2016, opposes Capital One's proposed acquisition of Discover.

First National has agreed to buy Touchstone Bankshares. The combined company would have more than $500 million each of deposits and loans.

The FDIC's newly unveiled policy statement on bank mergers could add strain to an already bleak outlook for mergers in the banking industry, particularly for larger banks.

Harborstone Credit Union in suburban Lakewood, Washington, plans to buy Savi Financial. That's seven deals in less than three months this year; the highest full-year total was 16 in 2022.

The blockbuster merger is now in the hands of banking agencies and the Department of Justice, which will have to evaluate its impact on competition.

The FDIC proposed a new policy to intensify scrutiny on U.S. bank mergers Thursday that emphasizes the resulting institutions' financial stability and ability to serve its community's needs.

Bank mergers and acquisitions have slowed in recent years amid recession fears and other economic uncertainties. But bank consolidation is a century-old trend that's expected to rev up again as early as this year due to higher costs, tougher regulation and fierce competition.

If former Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin follows through with a purchase of the controversial social media app, it will be the second high-profile deal he will have marshaled this year after leading a $1 billion equity investment in the troubled New York Community Bancorp.

Bank M&A activity has been in the doldrums in recent years, but a number of CEOs are predicting an increase in bank consolidation in 2024.