Feb 10, 2019

Half of the 10 biggest bank mergers have resulted in name changes

How unpopular are America's biggest banks? Here's a good indication: Fully half of the 10 biggest bank mergers in American history ended up with the acquirer giving up its name.

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Data: Dealogic; Note: As of Feb. 7, 2019; Chart: Andrew Witherspoon/Axios

Driving the news: BB&T is changing its name, probably to something cheerful, "consumer-facing" and focus-grouped to within an inch of its life by a New York branding consultancy. I'm guessing there will be a rounded typeface.

NationsBank changed its name to Bank of America, Travelers changed its name to Citigroup, Norwest changed its name to Wells Fargo, and Firstar changed its name to US Bancorp.
Other banks, including GMAC Bank, changed their name just because they felt they really needed a rebrand. (It's now known as Ally Bank.)

Go deeper: BB&T and SunTrust's mega merger

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