Mergers and acquisitions are among the most important methods of growth used by commercial banks. These transactions have become popular in Poland as early as in the mid 1990s and have led to significant changes in the operation of the whole banking system in the following ten years. As a result, the number of entities decreased, in particular those economically weak, the existing banks have been modernised and the growth potential of the whole financial market in Poland has risen. Consolidation has also resulted in diffusion of banking activity and risk management standards elaborated by highly developed countries during decades. Owing to the great importance and serious consequences of M&As for the development of the Polish banking system, the author has made a survey related to consolidation transactions within the group of all commercial banks in Poland, excluding entities where a receiver has been appointed and entities that do not exercise operating activities. The results of the survey show that M&As are carried on by less than half of the entities of the sector in Poland but the consequences of the transactions are experienced by most of them. Institutions that participated in M&As in the past generally define this kind of transactions as important development methods and more than half of the surveyed banks do not preclude a M&As transaction in the coming years.

The results of the survey have also confirmed the fact that international investors have a decisive impact on the consolidation in Poland. Another important trend noted - after bank managers' answers had been analysed - is that universal banks have dominated the transactions. Such entities are both the initiators of the transaction and institutions most sought for a merger or acquisition. A conclusion can also be drawn from the survey that in the Polish banking sector there is still a high potential for the development of mergers and acquisitions and the process of banks' consolidation has not been finished, yet. In Poland, further M&As transactions will mainly result from transactions entered into on international markets by owners of Polish entities. Due to the high growth potential of the Polish financial market and a poor saturation of the Polish economy with banking services, in the coming years, the consolidation will be set off by the entrance of new banks to the Polish market, which conduct cross-border business or open branches pursuant to the principle of a uniform licence.