Laurentian Bank bowing out of retail banking from stiff competition: CEO

Laurentian Bank head offices in Montreal, Tuesday, Dec. 2, 2025.

MONTREAL — The head of Laurentian Bank of Canada says the country’s retail banking industry had become too competitive for it to try and go it alone.

The bank announced Tuesday it was splitting itself up with plans to effectively give its retail and small and medium business segments to National Bank, and sell its commercial operations to Fairstone Bank.

On an analyst call Friday as the bank reported a drop in fourth-quarter profit, chief executive Éric Provost said the bank has been doing what it could to at least keep retail deposits stable, but the outlook was not good.

“The substantial investments needed to sustain a competitive position in the Canadian banking landscape, coupled with the evolving regulatory requirements and rising customer expectations, have made it increasingly difficult to compete.”

With the deal in place (though not yet approved) the focus is on keeping customers happy until the transition happens, he said.

“Our customers, from a retail standpoint, is our focus, in terms of maintaining level of services, making sure that our people are taken care of, and that we have a clear game plan towards executing our path toward National Bank migration.”

The bank will also look to keep growing business on the commercial side as it works to close the $1.9-billion sale of the division to Fairstone.

“We’re still in business, and we want to grow this bank,” he said.

A shareholder vote on the Fairstone deal is expected in the first quarter.

Laurentian confirmed Friday it will keep paying out a dividend of 47 cents, but said it’s not allowed to increase it as part of the terms of the deal.

The bank said it made a profit of $31.5 million in the fourth quarter, down from $40.7 million a year ago.

Revenue totalled $244.7 million for the quarter, down from $250.8 million a year ago. Laurentian’s provision for credit losses was $18 million for the fourth quarter, up from $10.4 million for the fourth quarter of 2024.

On an adjusted basis, Laurentian says it earned 73 cents per diluted share in its latest quarter compared with an adjusted profit of 89 cents per diluted share a year ago.

Analysts on average had expected an adjusted profit of 78 cents per share, according to estimates compiled by LSEG Data & Analytics.

This report by The Canadian Press was first published Dec. 5, 2025.

The Canadian Press