National Bank acquires Canadian Western Bank

On June 11, 2024, National Bank of Canada (“National Bank”) and Canadian Western Bank (“CWB”) announced that they entered into a definitive agreement for National Bank to acquire CWB.

Closing of the transaction was announced on February 3, 2025.

Under the terms of the agreement, National Bank acquired all of the issued and outstanding common shares of CWB by way of a share exchange, representing an equity consideration of C$5.3 billion (and a total equity value of C$5.6 billion inclusive of the shares already held by National Bank). Each CWB share, other than those held by National Bank, were exchanged for 0.450 of a common share of National Bank. The shares of National Bank issued on closing of the transaction represent a pro forma ownership of approximately 10.5% of National Bank by CWB shareholders, taking into account a separate private placement and public offering conducted concurrent with the transaction.

Further information can be found on Globe Newswire’s website.

With C$37 billion in loans, CWB is a full-service bank in Canada focused on servicing businesses, their owners and their families, offering services in business and personal banking, equipment financing, trust services and wealth management through its 39 branches located across Western Canada and Ontario.

With C$462 billion in assets as at October 31, 2024, National Bank is one of Canada's six systemically important banks. It operates through three business segments in Canada: Personal and Commercial Banking, Wealth Management and Financial Markets. A fourth segment, U.S. Specialty Finance and International, complements the growth of its domestic operations.