Laurentian Bank locks in November 1 close after CIRO clears final hurdle
November 1 is the closing date set for the two-part transaction that sends Laurentian Bank of Canada's commercial business to Fairstone Bank of Canada and its retail and small- and medium-sized enterprise (SME) banking portfolios to National Bank of Canada.
The Canadian Press reported that the date remains subject to conditions, and that Laurentian announced it after the Canadian Investment Regulatory Organization (CIRO) and the relevant securities regulators approved the deal.
Laurentian described the sign-off as the final key regulatory approval needed to complete the transaction.
The federal minister of finance, the Office of the Superintendent of Financial Institutions (OSFI), and the Competition Bureau cleared the deal earlier this year.
Laurentian Bank's capital markets subsidiaries move to Fairstone alongside commercial real estate financing, Northpoint Commercial Finance, and B2B Bank, the bank states on its transaction information page.
National Bank picks up roughly $3.4bn in underlying mutual funds, together with retail loans and deposits of about $3.3bn and $7.6bn and SME loans and deposits of about $0.8bn and $0.6bn, all measured as at July 31, 2025, per the December 2, 2025 announcement issued by Laurentian Bank and National Bank.
Fairstone is paying $40.50 per share in cash, a premium of about 20 percent to Laurentian's closing price of $33.76 on December 1, 2025, valuing the bank at roughly $1.9bn.
That same announcement confirms Laurentian will keep its brand identity and Montreal head office, with Éric Provost staying on as chief executive.
Laurentian Bank shares are expected to be delisted from the Toronto Stock Exchange once the transactions close.
A previous report by Wealth Professional set out the fixed cash consideration and the late-2026 timeline as the two factors shaping how the equity is priced for client portfolios.
Shareholders backed the Fairstone acquisition on February 5, with 98.8 percent of votes cast in favour against a two-thirds threshold, Laurentian Bank disclosed in its third quarter results.
The bank closed the sale of its syndicated loan portfolio to National Bank on February 17, 2026, receiving $646.2m in cash against an outstanding balance of $705.7m.
The Competition Bureau concluded its review on May 8, and the finance minister approved the acquisition transaction on June 26, according to the same disclosure.
Provost described the Fairstone combination as a chance to "grow our specialized commercial business even further," in the December 2, 2025 announcement.
Fairstone Bank president and CEO Scott Wood said in a statement carried by BNN Bloomberg that the deal "deepens our national lending footprint."
BNN Bloomberg also reported that 2,715 employees are affected, that Laurentian's 57 branches will not transfer to National Bank, and that branch staff are not guaranteed positions but may apply for open roles.
Laurentian Bank posted net income of $1.5m and a diluted loss per share of $0.08 for the third quarter ended July 31, 2026, against net income of $37.5m and diluted earnings per share of $0.73 a year earlier.
Reported results included adjusting items of $36.0m before tax, or $0.59 per share, related to the December 2, 2025 transactions, the bank's August 28, 2026 results release shows.
Adjusted net income was $28.0m and adjusted diluted earnings per share were $0.51, down from $39.6m and $0.78.
Provisions for credit losses rose to $25.6m from $11.1m, the reported efficiency ratio climbed to 91.0 percent from 76.9 percent, and the Common Equity Tier 1 ratio stood at 11.2 percent.
Commercial loans reached $19.0bn as at July 31, 2026, up 6 percent since October 31, 2025, on commercial real estate and inventory financing, per the same release.
Book value per common share fell to $55.17 from $57.67.
The board declared a quarterly common dividend of $0.47 on August 27, payable October 30, and approved terminating the shareholder dividend reinvestment and share purchase plan effective September 30.
"As our commercial specializations continue to deliver solid growth and we move closer to completing our transactions," Provost said in the results release, the bank remains focused on executing its plans responsibly.
Laurentian held no analyst conference call for the quarter, citing the Fairstone transaction.
