Fifth Third to buy Comerica in $10.9 billion deal to create ninth

By Manya Saini and Saeed Azhar (Reuters) -Fifth Third on Monday agreed to buy regional lender Comerica in an all-stock deal valued at $10.9 billion, striking the biggest U.S. bank deal of the year that would create the nation's ninth-largest lender. Dealmaking has gained momentum under a Trump administration that has pledged to streamline the process for approving mergers. At the same time, regional lenders are looking to diversify their revenue, strengthen balance sheets and expand in growing markets as they seek to compete with larger rivals. "I expect we will see more combinations amongst regional banks because we are in an environment where bank M&A of equals or near equals makes a lot of sense," said Michael Ashley Schulman, partner and CIO at Running Point Capital Advisors. The regio