Abstract
This thesis deals with mergers and acquisitions that were undertaken by the largest European banks between 1985 and 1992. On the basis of an empirical survey among executives from 61 banks and a survey of financial news sources, the study finds that the number of merger events increased significantly in 1988 and peaked in 1989. The same sources indicate that on the macro level the Second Banking Directive of 1988, which prescribed the integration of Europe's financial markets by the end of 1992, was the main reason for the merger trend. On the level of the individual firm, the thesis finds that significantly often, European banks in the past merged because of the following five reasons: (1) to achieve economies of scale, (2) to diversify into new geographic markets, (3) to achieve a sufficient size, (4) to reduce overlaps, or (5) to implement a change of strategy. A survey of the academic literature in the third part of this thesis tries to evaluate some of those motivations. Regarding economies of scale and efficient bank size, there seems to be no consensus among academics. While existence of economies of scale for large banks was mostlythe negated in earlier studies, several recent articles suggest a reevaluation of that opinion. The thesis concludes with an analysis of some factors that are commonly believed to be success factors in bank mergers. Several sources suggest that management skills are a crucial factor which can make the difference between the success or failure of a merger.
Lausberg, Carsten (1993). Reasons for bank mergers in Europe since 1985. Master's thesis, Texas A&M University. Available electronically from
https : / /hdl .handle .net /1969 .1 /ETD -TAMU -1993 -THESIS -L388.