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U.S. Bancorp: Closing MUFG deal by mid-2022 ‘uncertain’

U.S. Bancorp in Minneapolis expressed doubt that it can complete its acquisition of MUFG Union Bank along the timeline it originally provided. 

 
The $586 billion-asset company said when it announced the $8 billion acquisition in September that it expected to close the purchase by June 30. 
 
U.S. Bancorp, in its quarterly filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission, shared some concerns about meeting that goal. 
 
“At this time, it is uncertain whether such approvals will be received in time to allow for closing to occur in the first half of 2022; however, the parties continue to make significant progress in planning for closing and integration while awaiting regulatory approvals,” U.S. Bancorp said in the filing.
 
The company’s annual report, filed in February, mentioned the Biden Administration’s executive order, issued last summer, that directed federal agencies to review their processes for approving large bank mergers. 
 
“A number of large bank deals that were pending at the time of the executive order have not yet obtained approval, or obtained approval on an extended time frame,” the filing said. 
 
U.S. Bancorp “is unable to predict what impact the executive order will have on the timing of or ability to obtain regulatory approvals of mergers, including its pending merger with MUFG Union Bank,” the annual report said. 
 
A day before the banks announced their deal, MUFG Union Bank entered into a consent order with the Office of the Comptroller of the Currency that ordered the bank to address deficiencies in its technology and operational risk management.
 
The OCC and the Federal Reserve held a rare public hearing on the deal in March.
 
The $105 billion-asset MUFG Union Bank has about 300 branches, $58 billion of loans and $90 billion of deposits.

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