Citizens has been on a recruiting and acquisition tear in recent years. Tom Metzger, the recently appointed head of the bank's private wealth unit, says it's just the beginning.

The Providence, Rhode Island, company is having discussions with private wealth management teams elsewhere as it seeks to expand its fledgling private bank. In just three months, private banking deposits doubled to $2.4 billion.

The Providence, Rhode Island, company has recruited a head of wealth management advisors and a head of private wealth managers as part of a new strategy to reel in high-net worth clients.

The bank is betting on attracting high net worth clients in the wake of last year's turmoil.

Citizens made waves with its hires of around 50 private banking staff from First Republic. The head of wealth management at Citizens shared what's next.

Across the country, banks of all sizes are investing in the wealth business as a way to deepen customer relationships, capture recurring revenues and tap into a massive transfer of wealth from baby boomers to Generation X and millennials. A lot of money is up for grabs, but maybe not enough to go around.

Clients are gravitating toward the “biggest, stable institutions,” says Morgan Stanley CEO James Gorman.

This year’s list, like last year’s, was created through a formula encompassing AUM, production and percentage of fee-based business.

The stars aligned for the two longtime rivals to join forces, and some observers speculate that other regional banks will need to strike similar partnerships if they hope to remain competitive. But others say such deals are rare because they're hard to pull off.