Banking Industry M&A Stagnates; Energy Market Gets Some of the Blame

© 2016 The Texas Lawbook.By Kerry Curry (May 17) – There once was a time when Texas banks drew a price premium, and the Southwest led the country in banking M&A activity. Those days are gone. At least this year. It’s slow out there. Low oil prices, financial regulation, depressed stock prices and mediocre economic indicators are playing a role in the region’s anemic banking merger-and-acquisition market. “There are both challenges and opportunities on the horizon,” says C.K. Lee, managing director of the Financial Institutions Group at Commerce Street Capital. Banks need to strategically get into position, from a capital and credit quality standpoint, to maximize on the coming opportunities and not become a victim of the challenges, he says. In 2015, bank M&A deal value reached $26.6 billion nationally, compared to $18.8 billion in 2014. So far this year, only $6.6 billion in bank deal announcements have been made. In the Southwestern states, only four deals have been announced, compared to 10 announcements at this time a year ago: 1. Denver-based Guaranty Bancorp and Home State Bank in Loveland, Colo., announced in March that they would merge in a $133.7 million deal. 2. Also in March, Dallas-based Triumph Bancorp…