The Federal Reserve approved four bank merger and acquisition applications in recent months, including one for a bank based outside the U.S. The deals involve institutions headquartered in New Jersey, Virginia and Peru, to name a few.
Two New Jersey banks combine to form third-largest one in the state
Columbia Bank MHC and Columbia Financial, Inc. (Fair Lawn, N.J.) received Fed approval on May 8 to acquire Northfield Bancorp (Woodbridge, N.J.) and Northfield Bank (Staten Island, N.Y.) for $597 million. The combined entity will become New Jersey’s third-largest regional bank with approximately $18 billion in total assets. Columbia announced it also is planning a “second step” conversion through which it will reorganize its operations from a mutual holding company into a fully public stock holding company, with shares offered to the public at $10 per share. Find more details here.
Virginia-based bank expands into Pennsylvania
Burke & Herbert Financial Services Corp. (Alexandria, Va.) will acquire LINKBANCORP and LINKBANK (Camp Hill, Pa.) for $354.2 million, after receiving Fed approval on April 10. The deal is expected to close in the second quarter of 2026. At that time, Burke & Financial will have $11 billion in total assets and 100 branches spread across six states. Learn more here.
OceanFirst deepens New York with Flushing acquisition
OceanFirst Financial Corp. (Toms River, N.J.) received Fed approval on April 24 to merge with Flushing Financial Corporation (Uniondale, N.Y.) in an all-stock transaction valued at $579 million. The combined institution will hold approximately $23 billion in assets, $17 billion in loans, and $18 billion in deposits across 71 branches. Warburg Pincus affiliates have committed $225 million in equity investment tied to the deal's closing. Find more information here.
Peruvian bank approved for Florida branch opening
Banco de Credito del Peru (Lima, Peru) received Fed approval to open a state-licensed branch in Coral Gables, Fla., for $180 million on April 24. The planned expansion was announced in late 2025 and approved by Peruvian regulators in May 2026. The bank is seeking to increase its offerings in cross-border wealth management and specialized banking services for Latin American clients. Learn more here.