Quebec nurse had to clean up after husband's death in Montreal hospital
On a night she should have been mourning, a nurse from Quebec's Laurentians region says she was forced to clean up her husband after he died at a hospital in Montreal.
Royal Bank of Canada has agreed to pay $13.5-billion in cash for HSBC Bank Canada in what is the largest domestic banking deal on record.
The acquisition, at a scale not seen in Canada in decades, would secure RBC's spot as the country's largest bank as it looks to establish itself as the hub for a more globalized clientele.
"It's a unique, once in a generation opportunity to leverage all the investments we've already made in building a world-class retail and commercial bank," said chief executive Dave McKay on an analyst call.
The deal will see it take over about $134 billion in HSBC assets including a significant mortgage book, but RBC sees it more as a way to add to its client base. That includes the commercial side as well as wealthy clients and newcomers.
"That we're bringing in, first and foremost, commercial banking capability, globally connected clients, trade finance and multi-currency accounts, and preferential access to the next generation of clients," said McKay.
The bank expects to achieve cost savings of about $740 million for 2024, or about 55 per cent of HSBC Canada's current expense base, through a combination of integrating technology, closures among the 130 branches, and job cuts.
Neil McLaughlin, group head of personal and commercial banking at RBC, said there will be reductions but the bank does hope to absorb many of the 4,200 current HSBC Canada employees.
"There are obviously places we will not require the same number of FTE (full-time equivalent jobs) to service the combined client base. We have looked at that, and we feel very strongly that the number of open jobs we have across our business, and looking at where those FTE's are, we'll be able to welcome those employees in."
The deal will require approval from the Office of the Superintendent of Financial Institutions, the Competition Bureau, and the Ministry of Finance, but McKay said that as HSBC Canada has a market share of two per cent or less, he doesn't see areas of concern.
"We are not aware of any areas where the bureau is likely to have concern," said McKay. "This is still a relatively small bank by market share."
RBC expects the deal to close by late 2023 subject to closing conditions and regulatory approval.
Global banking giant HSBC Holdings PLC said earlier this year that it was reviewing strategic options for its Canadian subsidiary including the possible sale of the operations.
HSBC Group chief executive Noel Quinn said the bank decided to sell the Canadian business after a thorough review that concluded that there was a material value upside from selling.
"The deal makes strategic sense for both parties, and RBC will take the business to the next level," Quinn said in a statement.
"Our group strategy is unchanged, and closing this transaction will free up additional capital to invest in growing our core businesses and to return to shareholders."
The last time Canada's banking industry saw a deal of this scale was TD Bank Group's acquisition of Canada Trust in 1999 for about $8 billion, which is the equivalent of about $13.1 billion adjusted for inflation.
TD made the deal after the federal government blocked proposed mergers between RBC and Bank of Montreal as well as between TD and CIBC in 1998, which established a convention that mergers between the Big Five banks would not be allowed to go ahead.
This report by The Canadian Press was first published Nov. 29, 2022
On a night she should have been mourning, a nurse from Quebec's Laurentians region says she was forced to clean up her husband after he died at a hospital in Montreal.
A North Bay, Ont., lawyer who abandoned 15 clients – many of them child protection cases – has lost his licence to practise law.
Members of the Bank of Canada's governing council were split on how long the central bank should wait before it starts cutting interest rates when they met earlier this month.
Brad Marchand scored twice, including the winner in the third period, and added an assist as the Boston Bruins downed the Toronto Maple Leafs 4-2 to take a 2-1 lead in their first-round playoff series Wednesday
Cuba's foreign affairs minister has apologized to a Montreal-area family after they were sent the wrong body following the death of a loved one.
Mounties in Nanaimo, B.C., say two late-night revellers are lucky their allegedly drunken antics weren't reported to police after security cameras captured the men trying to steal a heavy sign from a downtown business.
The federal government's proposed change to capital gains taxation is expected to increase taxes on investments and mainly affect wealthy Canadians and businesses. Here's what you need to know about the move.
Canada's Deputy Prime Minister Chrystia Freeland was among the 1,700 delegates attending the two-day First Nations Major Projects Coalition (FNMPC) conference that concluded Tuesday in Toronto.
The daughter of a New Brunswick man recently exonerated from murder, is remembering her father as somebody who, despite a wrongful conviction, never became bitter or angry.
A property tax bill is perplexing a small townhouse community in Fergus, Ont.
When identical twin sisters Kim and Michelle Krezonoski were invited to compete against some of the world’s most elite female runners at last week’s Boston Marathon, they were in disbelief.
The giant stone statues guarding the Lions Gate Bridge have been dressed in custom Vancouver Canucks jerseys as the NHL playoffs get underway.
A local Oilers fan is hoping to see his team cut through the postseason, so he can cut his hair.
A family from Laval, Que. is looking for answers... and their father's body. He died on vacation in Cuba and authorities sent someone else's body back to Canada.
A former educational assistant is calling attention to the rising violence in Alberta's classrooms.
The federal government says its plan to increase taxes on capital gains is aimed at wealthy Canadians to achieve “tax fairness.”
At 6'8" and 350 pounds, there is nothing typical about UBC offensive lineman Giovanni Manu, who was born in Tonga and went to high school in Pitt Meadows.
Kevin the cat has been reunited with his family after enduring a harrowing three-day ordeal while lost at Toronto Pearson International Airport earlier this week.