11.   Also, ABN Amro, the big Dutch bank, issued a third ringing endorsement of a merger on Monday.

12.   Amoco and Ameritech and a couple of big banks succumbed to takeovers.

13.   And big banks like Citibank and J.P. Morgan Chase will also be selling euros this week.

14.   Analysts say the big German banks are being underpriced either by their overseas competitors, like Citicorp, or lower-cost German savings banks.

15.   And Merrill, they noted, is widely thought to be exploring a much larger merger with a big bank.

16.   And if the situation were bad enough, even some big banks could have trouble obtaining funds.

17.   And some big banks started to wonder whether those deals were worth the bother.

18.   And so there are a number of big bank holding companies that would consider bidding for Great Western.

19.   And some big banks have been trying to shed the burden of rescuing weaker, smaller ones.

20.   And the really big banks also offer investment banking advice, private banking and asset management services, derivatives and large corporate loans.