Fleet customers will have access to more ATMs and better online banking.

PORTLAND (AP) – Fleet, New England’s largest bank, is being swallowed up by Bank of America in a $47 billion dollar stock deal.

For Mainers, the deal will bring the Bank of America into their hometowns and a name change to their local banks. In dozens of communities statewide, Bank of America signs will replace Fleet’s name when the deal closes during the first half of 2004.

Fleet is Maine’s third largest bank, based on total deposits. It has 42 branches and 500 employees here.

Brad Hunter, the chairman and chief executive officer of Fleet Maine, said local customers will benefit from a coast-to-coast network of ATMs and branches provided by the merger.

He also said that Bank of America offers a broader range of banking products than Fleet has and also provides a more sophisticated online banking option.

Fleet says no layoffs or branch closings are expected, and that customer disruptions will be minimal.

But some analysts warn that a merger will lead to inevitable errors as accounts are shifted from one organization to another.

Analysts also said the deal could trigger a wave of copycat mergers as financial services giants scramble keep up by matching off with big regional banks, including Portland-based Banknorth Group.

“There’s speculation around here, is it going to start a new wave of big guys buying almost-as-big guys?” said John McCune, manager of banking research at SNL Financial Corp. “With this merger, Bank of America has essentially made itself the bank of America. The other question is who else could do that. No other single bank has the same combined coverage this bank does right now.”

The merger is among the biggest ever in the banking sector. Bank of America merged with NationsBank in 1998 in a deal initially valued at $59.3 billion and completed at $43 billion.

Some Maine-based banks say they hope to gain the business of people looking for alternatives to a big bank.