FleetBoston to Close 80 Branches

FleetBoston Financial (FBF Quote) said Friday it will consolidate 80 branches and one autobank in New Jersey to reduce overlap resulting from its merger with Summit Bancorp (SUB Quote).

The consolidation affects 47 Fleet branches and 33 former Summit Bank branches. Consolidations will begin July 12 for former Summit branches and July 27 for Fleet branches. Affected customers will be notified of changes within 90 days.

There should be no service disruption for customers, Fleet executives said. Branch employees will all be offered jobs with Fleet.

On the New York Stock Exchange, Boston-based Fleet gained $1.22, or 3.5%, to $35.61 in recent trading.