M&T Bank buying People's United in $7.6B all-stock deal

M&T Bank Corp. is buying People’s United Financial Inc. in an all-stock deal valued at about $7.6 billion.

Branches of the two regional banks are sprinkled throughout the Northeast and mid-Atlantic. Of the 67 People’s bank branches on Long Island, 33 are inside Stop & Shop supermarkets, said Steven Bodakowski, spokesman for People’s. M&T has 14 branches on Long Island.

People’s announced Jan. 21 that it would be exiting Stop & Shops in New York and Connecticut over the next several years. "Stop & Shop has valued our partnership with People’s United Bank over the past 26 years and we understand that the banking landscape and customer preferences have changed over that time," the Quincy, Massachusetts-based supermarket chain said in a statement Monday.

People’s United shareholders will receive 0.118 of a share of M&T common stock for each share they own. People’s United shareholders will collectively own approximately 28% of the combined business.

The combined company will have approximately $200 billion in assets and a network of more than 1,100 branches and more than 2,000 ATMs in 12 states from Maine to Virginia and the District of Columbia.

People’s headquarters in Bridgeport, Connecticut, will serve as the New England regional headquarters for M&T. The deal, expected to close in the fourth quarter, still needs an OK from shareholders of both companies. With Tory N. Parrish