"Banking Consolidation" looks at megamergers in banking that have occurred in recent years, identifies the economic forces that are motivating these mergers, and assesses their policy implications in the areas of antitrust, systemic risk, and "too big to fail" concerns.
- Define the following terms used in the reading:
- Riegle-Neal Act
- Gramm-Leach-Bliley Act
- FDIC Improvement Act
- systemic risk
- too big to fail
- How does the author define a large bank merger? Why did the number of these mergers increase beginning in 1997? In what other ways have large bank mergers changed in recent years?
- Distinguish between economies of scale and economies of scope in banking. What opportunities have regulatory changes in the 1990s created for banks to pursue these economies?
- How do mergers enhance banks’ abilities to diversify risk?
- What does the author conclude from the evidence on stock market reactions to bank merger announcements?
- Have mergers reduced competition in banking at the local level? How about at the national level? How does the Riegle-Neal Act restrain the size of banks?
Source: "Banking Consolidation." Simon Kwan, Federal Reserve Bank of San Francisco FRBSF Economic Letter, No. 2004-15, June 18, 2004, pp. 1-3.
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