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Cuomo Against Bank Merger

(AP Photo/Mike Groll)

New York Governor Andrew Cuomo said he’s fighting a proposed merger of Key Bank with first Niagara Bank. He said it would limit choice for New York consumers and could possibly violate antitrust laws

Cuomo has written a letter to the Federal Reserve Board, saying the merger of the two banks raises significant anti-trust concerns,” and would have a “devastating impact” on the retail banking industry and consumer access to banking services in Upstate New York. Speaking near Buffalo in Dunkirk, Cuomo offered a politically progressive–style argument against the merger, saying hundreds of average jobs could be lost, while the top people in the corporation get “rich.”  

“I’m not about Key Bank making a big profit,” Cuomo said. “Corporations have been doing very well at the expense of the working man, and I’m tired of it.”

The governor said the merger would result in a monopoly of just two major banks in some portions of the state.

Karen has covered state government and politics for New York State Public Radio, a network of 10 New York and Connecticut stations, since 1990. She is also a regular contributor to the statewide public television program about New York State government, New York Now. She appears on the reporter’s roundtable segment, and interviews newsmakers.