First Niagara enters Conn. with NewAlliance purchase

First Niagara Financial Group Inc. is entering New England via the $1.5 billion acquisition of NewAlliance Bancshares Inc., a New Haven-based bank with several branches in Fairfield County.

Buffalo-based First Niagara said the deal catapults it to becoming one of the 25 largest banks in the country with some $29 billion in total assets.

NewAlliance has $8.7 billion in assets, including $4.9 billion in loans, and $5.1 billion in deposits across nearly 90 branches in Connecticut and Massachusetts. The company employs 1,200 people.

First Niagara is paying a 24 percent premium for NewAlliance, based on the value of NewAlliance stock as of Aug. 19, and pledged to add $7.5 million to its philanthropic foundation to support charities in NewAlliance”™s market territory.

The companies expect to complete the deal early in the second quarter next year, and NewAlliance branches will be renamed under the First Niagara brand.