Bank Merger Activity in the United States, 1994-2003. Staff Study 176

摘要

Mergers and acquisitions have significantly changed the U.S. banking industry over the past quarter century. For example, during the 1980-2003 period the number of banking organizations decreased from about 16,000 to about 8,000, and mergers of healthy institutions were by far the most important cause of that consolidation. During that period, the share of industry assets held by the ten largest commercial banking organizations (ranked by assets) rose from 22 percent to 46 percent, and the share of industry deposits held by the ten largest (ranked by deposits) rose from 19 percent to 41 percent. Several factors, including advances in information technology, have facilitated the industry's consolidation, but the most important factor has undoubtedly been the gradual easing of geographic restrictions on banks.