Dutton, the son of a banking lawyer, was born in the Society Hill neighborhood of Philadelphia, and began playing guitar at age eight.

While bank executives said they did not expect any antitrust issues to block the deal, banking lawyers said that regulators could force the sale of some branches.

"In a way, it is easier if there are three around the table instead of two," explained Mr. Bray, himself a banking lawyer.

"This has made the regulators very angry," said a prominent banking lawyer, who asked not to be identified.

That position was the first time the Fed had extended its regulatory reach to include activities of foreign banks outside the United States, some banking lawyers said.

That led some banking lawyers, who asked to remain anonymous for fear of offending the central bank, to say that the Fed's decision had political overtones.

You're a banking lawyer, can you give me some advice about this?

It's a stance that banking lawyers argue extends beyond the scope of the fair lending laws.

Except it was your good self that started that with a sarcastic comment about me being a banking lawyer.

Mr. Clarke, a millionaire banking lawyer from Texas in office since 1985, said he had routinely filed publicly available, detailed reports on his finances.