while I agree that a company wouldn't give money away as dividend instead of investing, the way I look at it, banks make money by lending money. If a big bank comes around, they'll have competetive advantage over this bank by lending more money with less risk and probably also less interest to more investors. What will be of this bank then? call me a simpleton but I like to follow Warren Buffet's rule. Don't invest in something you don't understand.