M&T Bank Corp. A deal to close People’s United Financial Inc. for more than $ 7 billion, according to people familiar with the case, in the latest series of regional banking deals.
The companies are discussing a deal on any stock that could be announced this week, the people said, assuming the talks don’t fall apart. Based in Bridgeport, Connecticut, People’s United has a market value of approximately $ 6.6 billion, while Buffalo, NY-based M & T’s are over $ 19 billion.
Combined, the banks would have more than $ 200 billion in assets, with a network of branches concentrated in the northeastern and mid-Atlantic regions. The deal would facilitate M & T’s expansion into the Boston market and strengthen its position in New York and Connecticut.
For M&T, a serial acquirer, it would be the first major acquisition since the Hudson City Bancorp Inc. acquisition. in 2015. That deal was postponed for three years after regulators discovered “significant weaknesses” in M & T’s anti-money laundering and consumer protection practices. compliance programs.
M&T is one of the largest regional lenders in the Northeast, with $ 142.6 billion in assets at the end of 2020. Commercial real estate loans make up nearly 40% of the portfolio, including some from the battered New York City hospitality industry. But the bank’s credit performance, as well as that of many of its regional counterparts, has been better than expected over the past year.