Bank M&A Deal Tracker: NY banks targeted in 3 of 2024's 20 largest deals

Over the span of a month, three bank deals worth over $100 million were announced in New York, making it the only state with three of the 20 largest deals signed so far in the year, according to S&P Global Market Intelligence data through Sept. 10.

On Sept. 5, Englewood Cliffs, NJ-based ConnectOne Bancorp Inc. announced it would acquire Melville, NY-based First of Long Island Corp. for $280.8 million, marking 2024's eighth-largest deal. Four days later, Norwich, NY-based NBT Bancorp Inc. announced its own proposed acquisition of Williamsville, NY-based Evans Bancorp Inc. for $236.2 million, the 11th-largest bank deal.

On Aug. 14, Gallatin Point Capital LLC, a Greenwich, Conn.-based asset manager, announced it would acquire a 15% stake in Israel Discount Bank of New York for $150 million, which is now 2024's 15th-largest bank deal.

Banks deals by region, state

Thirty-two banks are being acquired in the Midwest so far in 2024, making it the most-targeted region. Seven of the bank targets in the region are headquartered in Illinois, making it the most targeted state in the country.

On Aug. 27, Champaign, Ill.-based First Busey Corp. announced its planned acquisition of Leawood, Kan.-based CrossFirst Bankshares Inc. for $925.5 million, making it both the fifth-largest US bank M&A deal announced this year and the fifth bank targeted in Kansas. Kansas ties with New York, Ohio and Washington as the second-most targeted states in the country in the analysis period.

The transaction puts First Busey among the top US bank acquirers over the past 10 years. The bank intends to shore up CrossFirst's deposit franchise while taking advantage of the seller's faster-growing, higher-yielding loan portfolio.

On Sept. 10, Maine-based Camden National Corp. announced plans to acquire New Hampshire-based Northway Financial Inc. for $86.6 million as it aims to boost growth. It marks the year's first deal in which a bank in the Granite State was the target.

US bank M&A statistics

Altogether, 83 US bank deals worth an aggregate deal value of $10.93 billion were announced in the year through Sept. 10, surpassing the total deal value of $8.95 billion and $4.15 billion from the 155 and 99 bank deal announcements in 2022 and 2023, respectively.

– Access a list of pending and completed M&A deals announced since Jan. 1, 2014. – Access the S&P Capital IQ Pro M&A summary page for US financial institutions. – Read more M&A news.

According to S&P Global Market Intelligence's second-quarter US Bank Outlook Survey, 39.5% of the respondents indicated that their respective institutions were either "somewhat" or "very likely" to pursue acquiring another company over the next 12 months compared with 40.8% in the first quarter.

Earlier in July, Republican representatives encouraged the Federal Reserve to "avoid unnecessary delays" and offer "predictability, transparency, and efficiency in the merger review process" in relation to Capital One Financial Corp.'s proposed acquisition of Discover Financial Services.

They argued that delays create reputational and operational risks, higher expenses and a detrimental effect on banks considering M&A transactions.