Santander Restarts Talks With M&T Over Combining U.S. Operations

Spanish bank Santander (STD) has restarted talks with M&T Bank (MTB) about merging its U.S. operations with the regional bank, based in Buffalo, NY.

The two had discussed a similar deal, but talks broke down in May over who would control the new, enlarged business, The Financial Times reported.

The deal would have created a business with $150 billion in assets and more than 1,500 branches in the northeast United States.

Now, the two banks are in discussions again and have even sounded regulators including The Federal Reserve, The Financial Times reported without naming its sources.

The issue of which bank would control the new company has not been resolved.

Santander is keen to boost its U.S. presence, but Chairman Emilio Botín has expressed reluctance to invest through minority positions.

Shares of M&T rose 5.8% in premarket trading.