Abstract
This paper looks at why bank consolidation has been taking place in the United States and what the structure of the banking industry might look like in the future. It then discusses the implications of bank consolidation for the economy and the challenge it poses for central bankers.
From the 1930s until the 1980s, the number of commercial banks in the United States was remarkably stable, with the number of banks between the 13,000 and 15,000 level. Yet as Figure 1 shows, beginning in the mid-1980s, the number of commercial banks began to fall dramatically. Why has this dramatic decline taken place?
This is a preview of subscription content, log in via an institution.
Buying options
Tax calculation will be finalised at checkout
Purchases are for personal use only
Learn about institutional subscriptionsPreview
Unable to display preview. Download preview PDF.
References
Amel, Dean F., “Trends in the Structure of Federally-Insured Depository Institutions: 1984–94,” Federal Reserve Bulletin, January 1996, 1–15.
Berger, Allen N., Anil K Kashyap and Joseph M. Scalise, “The Transformation of the U.S. Banking System: What a Long Strange Trip it’s Been,” Brookings Papers on Economic Activity 2: 1995, 55–218.
Cole, Rebel A. and John D. Wolken, “Financial Services used by Small Businesses: Evidence from the 1993 Survey of Small Business Finances,” Federal Reserve Bulletin, July 1995, 629–667.
Flannery, Mark J., “The Social Costs of Unit Banking Restrictions,” Journal of Monetary Economics 13: 1984, 237–249.
Kane, Edward J., “De Jure Interstate Banking: Why Only Now?” Journal of Money, Credit and Banking 28 (2), May 1996, 141–161.
Peek, Joe and Eric Rosengren, “Small Business Credit Availability: How Important is the Size of the Lender?” In Anthony Saunders and Ingo Walter, eds., Universal Banking: Financial System Design Reconsidered, Burr Ridge, Illinois: Irwin Publishing (forthcoming).
Savage, Donald, “Interstate Banking: A Status Report,” Federal Reserve Bulletin, December 1993, 1075–89.
Strahan, Philip E. and James Weston, “Small Business Lending and Bank Consolidation: Is there Cause for Concern?” Federal Reserve Bank of New York, Current Issues in Economic and Finance, March 1996, 1–6.
Editor information
Editors and Affiliations
Rights and permissions
Copyright information
© 1998 Springer Science+Business Media Dordrecht
About this chapter
Cite this chapter
Mishkin, F.S. (1998). Bank consolidation: A central banker’s perspective. In: Amihud, Y., Miller, G. (eds) Bank Mergers & Acquisitions. The New York University Salomon Center Series on Financial Markets and Institutions, vol 3. Springer, Boston, MA. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-1-4757-2799-9_1
Download citation
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-1-4757-2799-9_1
Publisher Name: Springer, Boston, MA
Print ISBN: 978-1-4419-5187-8
Online ISBN: 978-1-4757-2799-9
eBook Packages: Springer Book Archive