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If the best defense is a good offense, expect local community banks to take the fight to their newest Connecticut competitor, First Niagara Financial Group of Buffalo.
August 30 -
Two shareholders of NewAlliance Bancshares in New Haven filed class actions last week asking a judge to block the company's proposed sale to First Niagara Financial Group of Buffalo.
August 29 - Connecticut
The market is only gelling for buyers and sellers that meet some rather stringent criteria.
August 19
The Connecticut attorney general said Wednesday he is investigating First Niagara Financial Group's proposed acquisition of NewAlliance Bancshares Inc.
First Niagara of Buffalo announced a deal Aug. 19 to acquire the New Haven-based NewAlliance for $1.5 billion.
In a letter to the banks, Attorney General Richard Blumenthal asked them to provide him with information on and justification for the deal, saying it "raises significant and far-reaching legal and public policy issues."
Blumenthal requested a list of jobs that may be lost or branches that may close as a result of the merger; First Niagara's credit card and overdraft fee practices; the bank's plans for providing credit to consumers; and a full accounting of all executive and shareholder compensation, as well as a justification for the payouts.
Blumenthal is a Democrat running to fill the Senate seat of Chris Dodd, who is retiring.
First Niagara spokeswoman Leslie Garrity said the company would of course respond to Blumenthal's request, and hoped he would see the value of the proposed merger once he familiarizes himself with the deal.
"In each of the communities in which First Niagara has entered over the years, leaders in those communities have found that First Niagara's track record speaks for itself and as a result they have welcomed us enthusiastically," Garrity said in an email.
