More than a year after announcing plans to acquire Connecticut-based People’s United Bank, Buffalo-based M&T bank has received the final regulatory approval needed to complete the merger.
The Federal Reserve Board of Governors announced late Friday afternoon that it had voted unanimously to approve the merger deal.
M&T said in a statement Friday evening that it expected to complete the merger in accordance with the law and the merger agreement, but no time frame was provided.
The banks are required to wait at least 15 calendar days before completing the deal.
The banks had announced the merger on Feb. 22, 2021, with a fourth quarter 2021 target for completing the deal. While The New York State Department of Financial Services and the Connecticut Department of Banking approved the merger in October, approval by the Federal Reserve held up the deal. With the merger agreement set to expire on Feb. 21, the banks recently extended the agreement until June 1.
In a shareholder letter last week, René Jones said M&T Bank remained committed to the merger.
The Fed said in Friday’s order approving the deal that it had received approximately 193 public comments on the proposal from community groups, nonprofit organizations, and other interested organizations and individuals.
“The vast majority of comments expressed support for the proposal,” the Fed said. “Many of these commenters contended that the proposal would benefit communities and community organizations throughout the footprints of M&T and People’s United through increased resources and services provided by the combined organization.”
Some commenters did have concerns about the deal, including several who asked the Fed to require that M&T establish a community benefits plan. The Fed said banking regulations, including the Community Reinvestment Act, do not require pledges from depository institutions.
M&T still did create a community benefits plan in October in partnership with the National Community Reinvestment Coalition.
Other commenters had concerns about the banks’ track records of lending to minorities and low- and moderate-income borrowers. The Fed said it considered CRA results, Home Mortgage Disclosure Act (HMDA) data not available to the public and information from other bank regulators in making its decision. M&T Bank was also allowed to comment on public concerns.
The Fed also said the U.S. Department of Justice had reviewed the potential competitive effects of the merger and determined that the deal would not likely have “a significantly adverse effect on competition in any relevant banking market.”
The merger will see all 64 Massachusetts People’s United branches becoming M&T Bank branches. M&T does not currently have a retail presence in Massachusetts.
