NOTE FROM THE EDITOR:

Two years ago, as First Horizon became newly disentangled from a proposed $13.4 billion acquisition by TD, I theorized the Memphis, Tennessee-based lender may have been preparing for a “hot bank summer,” in which it simply focused on self-care.

Fast-forward to 2025, and analysts are pointing to First Horizon as the “most obvious” upcoming M&A target, according to an analyst at Truist Securities.

That’s after, of course, what may actually have been a hot bank summer – the hottest three months in bank mergers and acquisitions, by number of deals, since the third quarter of 2021.

More than half of the third quarter’s $16.63 billion in aggregate deal value stems from an $8.6 billion proposed tie-up between Pinnacle and Synovus. Another 25% can be chalked up to PNC’s $4.1 billion acquisition of Colorado-based FirstBank.

The October-to-December quarter, however, has a chance to become an even hotter bank fall, presumably led by the year’s biggest deal so far: Fifth Third’s $10.9 billion proposed acquisition of Comerica, announced a week ago.

Considering all of the recent M&A activity, Banking Dive is publishing a special edition today focused on the banking deal landscape. 

In today’s collection, we’ll focus on impact. Buying Dallas-based Comerica, for example, will give previously Midwest-centric Fifth Third a sizable foothold in Texas (in addition to the bank’s recent cloudburst of growth in the Southeast).

Fifth Third, of course, isn’t the only Ohio bank to acquire its way into the Dallas-Fort Worth market. Columbus-based Huntington bought Veritex Holdings in a $1.9 billion deal that’s set to close this month.

Stories included here will focus on executive comments regarding the recent Fifth Third, Pinnacle, PNC and Huntington deals. In two particularly interesting turns, the CEOs of Pinnacle and Synovus are fighting the perception that the deal would become “Truist 2.0.” Meanwhile, a recently departed FirstBank leader spoke candidly of the vacancy (read: opportunity) the PNC deal may create for midsize lenders in Colorado.

Not every bank is interested in selling, though. And Banking Dive also looks at one San Antonio lender that’s embracing its independence, even as its longtime CEO is retiring.

Thanks for reading.