Regional lenders Berkshire Hills Bancorp, Brookline strike $1.1 bln merger deal (updated)

Brookline Bancorp

16/12/2024 13:47

(Adds details from statement in paragraphs 4-5, shares in
paragraph 3, context in paragraph 2)
       Dec 16 (Reuters) - Berkshire Hills Bancorp  BHLB.N  and
Brookline Bancorp  BRKL.O  have agreed to merge in an all-stock
deal valued at about $1.1 billion, the regional lenders said on
Monday.
    Regional lenders that were at the heart of the banking
crisis in 2023 have been cutting more deals this year to expand
their geographic foothold and better compete with rivals,
extending a wave of consolidation in the sector. 
    Shares of Brookline were last up 1.4% in premarket trading. 
    The combined company will trade on the New York Stock
Exchange under a new name and ticker symbol, which will be
announced later. 
    The banks expect the deal to close by the second half of
next year. 
    

 (Reporting by Manya Saini in Bengaluru; Editing by Shounak
Dasgupta and Krishna Chandra Eluri)
 ((Manya.Saini@thomsonreuters.com; X: manya__saini))