Now with a sale pending for the bank that bills itself as "America's most convenient bank," some industry-watchers fear that banking could get a bit less friendly for customers of Commerce.

"Customers will see less choice," said Bill Madway, a visiting professor of marketing at Villanova University's School of Business. "It's not like banks want to be open longer hours."

In a deal announced Tuesday, Toronto-based TD Bank Financial Group -- owner of Canadian megabank TD Canada Trust -- would give $8.5 billion in stocks and cash for the Cherry Hill-based bank. It requires the approval of regulators and shareholders and would not close until March or April.

TD Bank says it wanted to buy Commerce because the bank has a similar consumer-centered focus. Both banks have won major customer-service awards, for instance, and are leaders in keeping teller windows open for longer hours than most banks.

"It is the TD Canada Trust of the United States," said Ed Clark, CEO of TD Bank.

The bank-office operations would merge over the first year or so, TD Bank officials said, and the TD Banknorth branches in the Commerce strongholds of Philadelphia and New Jersey would become Commerce banks.

TD executives say Commerce customers would not immediately notice any changes as a result of the proposed sale.

In the long term, it's undecided what would happen to the bank names and services.

Robert S. Patten, who follows banking for Morgan Keegan & Co. said in a note published Tuesday that Commerce will probably look a lot like TD's current holdings in two years. "Not bad," he wrote. "But it isn't Commerce."

The problem, he said, is that Commerce has a unique culture that might not work when it's an arm of a larger operation.

Villanova's Madway said that the fewer customer-service special touches Commerce offers, the less other banks will have to do to compete for customers.