Huntington Challenges Larger Banks with Cadence Acquisition
- Jack Borys
- Oct 28
- 2 min read
Huntington Bancshares (HBAN) announced Monday morning, October 26th, that they have reached an acquisition deal with Cadence Bank, a smaller commercial banking company located mainly in the southeastern part of the United States. This is an all-stock deal valued at around $7.4 billion with shares of Cadence bank (CADE) being paid out at $39.77 per share.
Chief Executive Steve Steinour says that the acquisition of Cadence represents an “important next step,” referring to the trajectory and growth plans of Huntington.This move by Huntington is a push to challenge more prominent banks in the U.S. such as JPMorgan Chase and Bank of America who have financial centers in most states. This move raises Huntington in the rankings of regional banks and boosts their overall assets to $276 billion. The move also helps Huntington gain more of a presence in the South, especially in the high-growth Texan cities of Austin, Dallas, Houston, and Fort Worth.
The banking industry has been waiting for a wave of regional bank mergers and acquisitions as a way to consolidate smaller companies into strong competitors against the megabanks that lead the industry. The diversity that is being created for consumers is healthy for competition and will push the bigger banks to incorporate new growth strategies.
Huntington is not the only bank securing acquisitions of smaller banks. In the past couple of months, banks such as Pinnacle Financial Partners, Synovus Financial, PNC financial services group, Fifth Third Bancorp, and Comerica have all finalized deals or initiated the process in order to consolidate down the banking industry. This trend aligns with the Trump Administration initiative to simplify the merger and acquisition process. Despite these developments, bank stocks continue to face pressure amid elevated interest rates and consumer uncertainty. While some apprehension remains across the industry, the ongoing consolidation trend reflects a broader effort to position for recovery and long-term growth.
As consolidation continues across the regional banking landscape, Huntington’s acquisition of Cadence positions it as a more formidable player in both size and geographic reach. Whether this wave of mergers and acquisitions will strengthen long-term stability or concentrate too much power in fewer institutions remains to be seen. But for now, Huntington’s move marks a significant step in reshaping the U.S. banking landscape.
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