Hudson City Bancorp Inc. said Monday that its merger with
M&T Bank Corp. has been delayed again and won't close by its
previously announced date of May 1.
The Paramus, N.J.-based bank said the Federal Reserve notified
M&T that it wouldn't make a decision on the merger application
before April 30.
Hudson City Chief Executive Denis Salamone called the delay
"unexpected" and said the board is considering its response.
"The board of Hudson City needs more time to understand the
nature and timing of the delay and its potential impact on the
transaction before the board can determine its course of action,"
Mr. Salamone said in a news release.
He added, though, that the bank continues to believe in "the
strategic and economic fundamentals of the merger."
Hudson City said it has suspended the election process regarding
the merger. The companies didn't set a new deadline for the merger,
and representatives weren't immediately available for comment.
Hudson City and M&T first reached a merger agreement in
August 2012 in a stock-and-cash deal valued at the time at $3.7
billion, but the two companies have extended the deadline several
times.
The deal hit a snag in early 2013, when M&T learned that the
Federal Reserve had concerns about the bank's anti-money-laundering
procedures. In turn, the central bank ordered improvements, and
M&T launched a continuing initiative to address the
concerns.
In December, the companies set May 1 as a new target date.
Shares of Hudson City are up about 4% this year through
Thursday's close, while M&T is up about 1%. Both were inactive
premarket.
Write to Angela Chen at angela.chen@dowjones.com
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