The study looked at how changes in banking laws affected the makeup of bank boards. After analyzing data from nearly 1,900 banks in 14 states over 3 years, it was found that when laws allowed banks to merge across states, they tended to have more outside board directors. However, when laws allowed banks to merge within a state, they had fewer outside board directors. This suggests that the threat of takeovers influences the composition of bank boards. Additionally, when laws allowed new banks to enter the market, there were more outside board directors. Overall, changes in banking laws impacted the composition of bank boards, with larger banks having more outside board directors.