Fifth Third Sees Comerica Merger Wins Ahead of Labor Day Conversion

Fifth Third Bancorp is seeing early results of its merger with Comerica, is making progress on the integration and is set to launch its systems conversion over Labor Day weekend, Fifth Third Chairman, CEO and President Tim Spence said Friday (July 17) during a second-quarter earnings call. "When we announced our merger with Comerica nine months ago, we made three commitments: to produce no tangible book value per share dilution, to become an even more profitable company, and to create an even better platform for long-term growth," Spence said. "While we are still in the middle of integration and not every metric is yet where it will be, our trajectory and long-term potential are visible in this quarter’s results." Spence highlighted second-quarter results that include the tangible book value per share increasing 10% year over year, 1% sequentially and 7% since the announcement of the transaction. He also noted that the bank’s adjusted return on tangible common equity improved to 19%, its adjusted return on assets improved to 1.3%, and its adjusted efficiency ratio improved to 57%. In addition, consumer and small business deposits increased 4% sequentially. "On the integration front, we executed our second mock conversion in June with good outcomes," Spence said. "We remain on track to execute systems conversion on Labor Day weekend, the last step to unlock the $850 million of annualized run-rate synergies we committed to deliver in the fourth quarter." Fifth Third announced its $10.9 million merger with Comerica in October, and it announced in February that the merger closed, establishing the ninth-largest U.S. bank by assets. In addition to the integration, Fifth Third’s product and technology teams delivered several innovations during the second quarter. Spence highlighted Newline’s extension of its Model Context Protocol server capabilities to standardize how AI models can use its tools and workflows; the consumer team’s shipment of a new AI-powered interface within the bank’s mobile app; the launch of the small business banking experience Fifth Third for Business; and, internally, the continued use of AI tools to boost quality and productivity. "While it’s early days and we have much yet to learn about how best to harness the power of these tools, I’m looking forward to what we will be able to do after our technical conversion is complete," Spence said. Fifth Third’s consumer and business digital platforms now have 3.27 million average active digital users, up from 3.17 million a year ago, and 2.57 million average active mobile users, up from 2.43 million a year ago, according to an earnings presentation released Friday. During the second quarter, Fifth Third shipped the first Direct Express cards on its new platform. The Department of the Treasury announced in September that it picked Fifth Third Bank to serve as the financial agent for Direct Express, which is a program that helps roughly 3.4 million Americans get monthly federal benefits via a prepaid debit card. Spence said during the call that Fifth Third shipped the first cards "with 66,000 new beneficiaries and all participating federal agencies now live."