More deals may be coming in the wake of Bank of America’s buy of FleetBoston.

BOSTON (AP) – When the Bank of America-FleetBoston merger becomes official next month, New England’s banking landscape will have shifted dramatically.

The question now is, where will it shift next?

Ever since the two mega-banks announced their merger in October, smaller players have been maneuvering to pick up FleetBoston customers, offering everything from free checking to Ray Bourque bobblehead dolls to lure new accounts.

But there’s little doubt the banks are also maneuvering for each other. Analysts expect to see regional players like Sovereign Bancorp Inc., Citizens Financial and Banknorth continue to snap up niche banks and try to build the strength to challenge Bank of America.

“You look at the smaller banks in New England, there’s going to be a lot fewer of them, because they’ll become part of our company or Citizens or Sovereign,” said William Ryan, president and chief executive officer of Portland, Maine-based Banknorth, now the largest New England-based bank. “The cost of regulation, the cost of computerization and the cost of marketing is driving the smaller banks to be part of a larger company.”

That trend is nothing new. Banknorth has acquired 24 banks since 1993. In December, it announced plans to purchase the parent company of Cape Cod Bank & Trust Co. in a stock deal valued at about $300 million.

Meanwhile, Providence, R.I.-based Citizens Financial Group, a subsidiary of Royal Bank of Scotland, recently snapped up two Massachusetts banks: Community National Bank and Cambridgeport Bank.

“You’ve got those two guys combing the woods and I wouldn’t be surprised to see one of them make another announcement,” said Jim Moynihan, a senior vice president and bank stock specialist at Advest Inc. Moynihan said he would expect such expansion to focus on New York, Pennsylvania and Connecticut rather than Massachusetts.

There’s also Philadelphia-based Sovereign, which announced plans earlier this year to acquire New Bedford-based Seacost Financial Services Corp., the largest independent banking company left in the state, for $1.1 billion in stock.

But as these banks digest their acquisitions, it’s also uncertain whether the medium-sized players themselves will still exist in their current form a few years down the line.

“It will surprise me greatly if those three do survive and are around in name in five years time. I don’t think so,” said Lee Forker, president of New England Research and Management, who follows the regional banking sector closely. “I can see where all three could be vulnerable to the siren song of money.”

That could mean a merger, or, some believe, an acquisition by an even bigger player looking to expand in New England and challenge Bank of America: a Citigroup, for instance, which would offer clout against Bank of America.

“You’re going to see another national name come into New England,” said Stanley J. Lukowski, Chairman and Chief Executive of Eastern Bank, another regional bank, which is chartered as a mutual company, making it more difficult to buy.

Advest’s Moynihan said he doubts Citigroup would move into New England, and notes Wells Fargo, another huge national bank without a foothold here, has already indicated it doesn’t think there’s room to grow in the region.

One thing many analysts agree on is that smaller banks won’t disappear. If prosperous ones get picked up, others will spring up in their place.

Small community banks like Rockland Trust, with 52 branches and $2.4 billion in assets, are “bringing in more damn business than they know what to do with,” because of the Fleet merger said Forker, who said his company owns some Rockland shares.

Another small bank that’s been mentioned as a possible takeover target: Medford-based Century Bancorp Inc., whose Century Bank and Trust has 22 branches.

“With all of this consolidation, it’s been a bonanza for the well-run community bank,” Moynihan said. “The local businessman doesn’t want to deal with Fleet, now Bank of America. He wants to be able to walk into the local community bank, say hello to the CEO and say, ‘I need another a hundred thousand’ for his line of credit and know right then whether they’re going to get it.”

AP-ES-03-22-04 1428EST