Ottawa to approve RBC's $13.5-billion deal for HSBC Canada
The Canadian government will approve Royal Bank of Canada’s landmark deal to acquire HSBC Holdings Plc’s Canadian operations.
Finance Minister Chrystia Freeland’s office is set to issue a statement allowing the deal, according to people familiar with the matter who asked not to be identified because they are not authorized to speak publicly about the decision.
Royal Bank struck the $13.5 billion agreement to buy HSBC Canada, the country’s seventh-largest bank, in November 2022.
The deal represents the largest-ever acquisition for Royal Bank, giving it the chance to expand its domestic operations with HSBC’s approximately 130 Canadian branches and $120 billion in assets, which includes wealth management, personal and commercial banking.
The Competition Bureau, Canada’s antitrust watchdog, gave its approval to the deal in September, stating in a report to the finance minister that the union wouldn’t result in a “substantial lessening or prevention of competition.”
But the deal still required the blessing of Freeland’s office. It has faced opposition from consumer advocates — who argue HSBC Canada has played an important role in influencing other lenders to lower their mortgage rates — as well as Pierre Poilievre, who leads the Conservative Party of Canada, the country’s main opposition political party. He has attacked the merger on the grounds that it will increase the cost of living for Canadians.
The banks have said they expect the deal to close in early 2024. Spokespeople for RBC and HSBC did not immediately respond to requests for comment Thursday evening.
Bloomberg.com
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