Speculation has heated up about a possible new owner for First Niagara Bank.
There had been some of this speculation last month, and now the Wall Street Journal is reporting that KeyCorp is in advanced talks to buy First Niagara Financial Group.
Reportedly the deal could value First Niagara at a modest premium to its current market value of just under four billion dollars. The Buffalo News notes that the deal would combine the number two and number three banks in Western New York, creating a bigger rival to M&T bank.
But it would also involve an overlap of branches and some back office operations for First Niagara and Key Bank, and that potentially could mean some layoffs.
About 2,300 First Niagara employees work in Western New York. First Niagara has 390 branches in New York, Pennsylvania, Massachusetts and Connecticut.
