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Cuomo Says He'll Fight Bank Merger

Governor Cuomo says he’s fighting a proposed merger of Key Bank with first Niagara Bank, saying it would limit choice for New York consumers and could possibly violate anti trust laws.

Cuomo has written aletter 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 says the merger would result in a monopoly of just two major banks in some portions of the state.