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The city of New Haven, Conn., is asking federal and state regulators to block the proposed $1.5 billion sale of NewAlliance Bancshares Inc. in New Haven to First Niagara Financial Group in Buffalo, N.Y., claiming the transaction would not meet the "needs or convenience" of the community.
December 7 -
Peyton Patterson, the CEO of NewAlliance Bancshares, announced she will leave the company after it is acquired by First Niagara Financial early next year.
October 19 -
The Connecticut attorney general said Wednesday he is investigating First Niagara Financial Group's proposed acquisition of NewAlliance Bancshares Inc.
September 1 -
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
Shareholders of First Niagara Financial Group Inc. and NewAlliance Bancshares Monday overwhelmingly approved their merger agreement despite strong disapproval from Connecticut officials.
Although regulators still need to sign off on the deal, the shareholder vote marked the first major hurdle in the approval process.
More than 90% of First Niagara's shares and more than 94% of NewAlliance's shares were in favor of the deal, in which First Niagara in Buffalo, N.Y., will acquire NewAlliance in New Haven for $1.5 billion. The acquisition will create a regional bank with operations in four Northeastern states and $29 billion in assets.
In early December, New Haven's Mayor John DeStefano and state Attorney General Richard Blumenthal, an incoming U.S. senator, challenged the deal at a press conference, claiming the union would not meet the "needs or convenience" of the community. The city may also join a lawsuit that was filed in the Connecticut Superior Court in September, seeking to block the deal.
The acquisition is expected to close in April.
