20 Jan 2023 10:39 ET
10:39 AM EST, 01/20/2023 (MT Newswires) -- Consolidation in the Canadian banking sector is unlikely, but the possibility is no longer zero, Barclays said on Friday. Financial services analyst John Aiken said the door to Canadian bank consolidation may open again, 25 years after the failed merger of Royal Bank of Canada (RY.TO) and Bank of Montreal (BMO.TO). "...We believe that the regulatory review of Royal Bank's acquisition of HSBC Canada has the potential to open the door to additional consolidation, even if it is by just a crack," Aiken said in a note to clients "When looking at the potential for consolidation in the Canadian banking landscape, there are a myriad of potential combinations," the analyst said. Aiken said combining some of the smaller banks could alleviate scale issues and potentially boost competition, despite a reduction in the number of players. "However, at this juncture, we do not believe it is constructive to look at the merits of specific potential deals, given that several dominoes still need to fall before consolidation moves closer to 'likely' territory," the analyst said. Price: 134.02, Change: -0.45, Percent Change: -0.33 |