Federal Reserve approves Fleet merger

BOSTON — The Federal Reserve board has approved the merger of FleetBoston Financial
Corp.and Summit Bancorp of New Jersey after rejecting objections by the Massachusetts
Division of Banks and consumer activists. Except for approval by shareholders
in the two companies, the merger has now been approved by all required agencies.
Approval by the shareholders is expected and the companies predict that the merger
will be completed by the end of March. The merger would $39 billion in assets
and 500 branches in New Jersey, Pennsylvania and Connecticut, the Boston Globe
reported.