Why Do Banks Merge?
利用意大利数据，区分收购与合并两种交易类型，分别考察其动机与效果：合并旨在提升服务收入但被人力成本抵消，收购则通过重组贷款组合提高利润。
The banking industry is consolidating at an accelerating pace, yet no conclusive results have emerged on the benefits of mergers and acquisitions. In order to investigate the motives and results of each type of deal we consider separately acquisitions (that is, the purchase of the majority of voting shares) and mergers, using Italian data. Mergers seek to improve income from services, but the increase is offset by higher staff costs; return on equity improves because of a decrease in capital. Acquisitions aim to restructure the loan portfolio of the acquired bank; improved lending policies result in higher profits.