Consolidation has slowed since the pandemic, but UMB's agreement to buy Heartland Financial — the largest deal in three years — is one of several merger announcements in the past two weeks. Talks among other potential buyers and sellers are said to be picking up.

The company's attorneys had previously managed to successfully decertify the class in the seven-year long case, but the decision was reversed last year.

The Philadelphia-based bank's parent company, Republic First Bancshares, had been roiled by a yearslong proxy battle involving activist investors groups and its former CEO.

The JPMorgan Chase CEO took aim Tuesday at the proposed Basel III endgame rules, hindrances to mergers and bureaucratic burdens. "I would love to have a more productive relationship with regulators, but I think it takes conversation," Dimon said.

Institutions and their investors are facing pressure from climate activists, cautiously awaiting interest rate cuts and adjusting to new Federal Reserve and FDIC policies.

Should the all-stock transaction close as planned later this year, Wintrust Financial in the Chicago area would gain about $2.7 billion of assets.

Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer, D-N.Y., said that he would like to examine the proposed acquisition on "narrower bases."

Industry stakeholders predict the bombshell allegations around how United Wholesale Mortgage does business will impact customer sentiment and could lead to more regulatory oversight.

First National has agreed to buy Touchstone Bankshares. The combined company would have more than $500 million each of deposits and loans.

Barclays has long faced questions from investors about the viability of its Wall Street operations because the investment bank consumes more capital than other, higher-returning divisions across the firm.