For all of the reasons I have discussed, it seems reasonable to expect a continued high level of merger activity for the foreseeable future. Very large mergers will not be uncommon. Studies based on historical experience suggest that in around a decade there will likely be about 3,000 to 4,000 banking organizations, down from about 7,000 today.
Although the top 10 or so banking organizations will almost certainly account for a larger share of U.S. banking assets than they do today, the overall size distribution of banks will probably remain about the same. That is, there will likely be a few very large organizations, and an increasing number of firms as we move down the size scale.