Fifth Third Bank has completed its $10.9 billion all-stock acquisition of Comerica, and more than 70 branch locations are closing — another mega-merger that concentrates financial power while ordinary customers are told to be grateful for the convenience.
The deal, finalized in October, forces Comerica customers onto Fifth Third's systems starting Sept. 8. Everything changes: mobile banking logins, passwords, app interfaces. The bank promises a smooth transition, but working Americans have heard that before every consolidation that leaves them driving farther for a teller and paying more in fees.
Steve Davis, Fifth Third's regional market president for Michigan, framed the branch closures as a net positive. "If you're in the tri-county of Southeast Michigan — like Livingston, Macomb, Wayne, etc., we're going to be number one in terms of branches there," Davis said. "In the City of Detroit, we're going to be number one in terms of branches there, so for our customers on average it's a much better thing than a worse thing."
"Number one in branches" sounds like competition. It's not. It's what remains after one competitor eats another. The bank says it will relocate affected employees or help them find other opportunities — language that typically means some workers won't be relocated at all.
Comerica customers will receive welcome packets in August walking them through the transition. Davis said debit cards, ATM access, direct deposits, and ACH transfers will carry over. Customers just need to create new credentials on the Fifth Third platform. "It's an all hands on deck to make sure that we can exceed customer expectations," Davis said.
The public attention, meanwhile, has fixated on the fate of Comerica Park — the downtown Detroit home of the Tigers. Davis said the bank is "evaluating everything" and will decide on naming rights in the offseason. "It's really cool that people care so much about Comerica Park and what it's meant to them," he said.
A stadium name is a branding decision. The merger is a structural one. Regulators greenlit a deal that eliminates a major independent bank headquartered in Detroit, reduces the branch footprint by at least 70 locations, and further concentrates the regional banking market in fewer hands. The same regulators who are supposed to ensure competition instead rubber-stamped another step toward financial monopoly.
The question that never gets answered in these deals: if consolidation always benefits the customer, why do fees keep rising and branches keep closing? The revolving door between Wall Street executives and the agencies that oversee them ensures the answer stays buried in fine print.
