Federal Reserve approves KeyCorp’s pending acquisition of First Niagara Financial Group

The Federal Reserve has approved KeyCorp’s (NYSE: KEY) pending $4.1 billion acquisition of Buffalo–based First Niagara Financial Group, Inc. (NASDAQ: FNFG).

Cleveland, Ohio–based KeyCorp, the parent company of KeyBank, expects to complete the acquisition “on or about” Aug. 1, the banking company said in a news release issued Tuesday.

The completion is “pending the satisfaction of customary closing conditions,” KeyCorp added.

It also expects systems and client conversion during the fourth quarter of 2016, which is subject to the Office of the Comptroller of the Currency’s pending regulatory approval for the acquisition.

“We are pleased to reach another important milestone as we bring Key and First Niagara together,” Beth Mooney, CEO and chair of KeyCorp, said in the release.

The Federal Reserve approval came a day after KeyCorp announced it would close dozens of branches of both KeyBank and First Niagara Bank in markets across New York, Pennsylvania, Connecticut, and Massachusetts.

The closures, including 18 branches in Central New York, are part of a branch-consolidation plan in each market, KeyCorp said.

Key said it plans to offer “roles” in the company to “all branch employees.”

Key has also agreed to limit upstate New York layoffs elsewhere in the firm to no more than 250, according to an agreement the banking company reached with the office of U.S. Senator Charles Schumer (D–N.Y.).

Mooney also confirmed that Buffalo will serve as the company’s Northeast regional headquarters and that Key will “invest and grow” in New York.

That includes plans to expand its mortgage, auto lending, and insurance businesses.

KeyBank will add “at least” 500 to 600 new jobs in New York state over the next three years (2016-2018), and will likely add an additional 300 to 400 jobs over the following two years (2019-2020), according to a Schumer news release.

Contact Reinhardt at ereinhardt@cnybj.com