HSBC Bank Canada Sells Full Service Investment Advisory Business To National Bank Of Canada

On September 20, 2011, HSBC Bank Canada announced that it had agreed to sell the full-service investment advisory business of HSBC Securities (Canada) Inc. and certain assets related to the segregated fund and insurance business of HSBC Insurance Agency (Canada) Inc. to a wholly owned subsidiary of National Bank of Canada for an initial estimated purchase price of $206 million in cash, subject to certain adjustments, pursuant to an asset purchase agreement dated September 20, 2011 (as amended). The transaction closed on January 1, 2012.

HSBC Bank Canada, a subsidiary of HSBC Holdings plc, is the leading international bank in Canada. HSBC is one of the world's largest banking and financial services organizations.

HSBC Bank Canada offers a comprehensive range of financial services including retail banking and wealth management; commercial banking; and global banking and markets services.

National Bank of Canada is an integrated group that provides comprehensive financial services to consumers, small and medium-sized enterprises and large corporations in its core market, while offering specialized services to its clients elsewhere in the world.

National Bank offers a full array of banking services, including retail, corporate and investment banking. It is an active player on international capital markets and, through its subsidiaries, is involved in securities brokerage, insurance and wealth management as well as mutual fund and retirement plan management.

National Bank has over $156 billion in assets and, together with its subsidiaries, employs 19,431 people. Its securities are listed on the Toronto Stock Exchange.

HSBC Bank Canada was represented in-house by Lynne Charbonneau, Deputy General Counsel (M&A and banking) and Lorna Strong, Deputy General Counsel (employment and operations) and by a team from Stikeman Elliott LLP. The Stikeman Elliott team comprised Simon Romano, Alethea Au, Elise Lenser, Amy Hu and Nasim Jamasbi (M&A); Lorna Cuthbert and Kelly O'Ferrall (employment); Andrea Boctor and Luc Vaillancourt (pensions); Alison Forbes (real estate); John Lorito, Alan Kenigsberg and Jill Winton (tax); Annette Dueck (insurance); Michael Kilby (competition) and Meaghan Obee Tower (banking).

Torys LLP represented National Bank of Canada under the direction of François Lavallée and Odin Larocque. The Torys team included Sharon Geraghty, Michael Pickersgill, Peter Bryce, Dean Kotwal and Miriam Levin (M&A); John Unger, Peter Keenan and Saira Bhojani (tax); Daniel Logan and Ebad Rahman (technology); Mitch Frazer and Reesha Hosein (employment, pensions and benefits); Christine Vogelesang (securities registration); Blair Keefe (banking); Omar Wakil and Damien Liddle (competition); Joel Wiesenfeld (litigation) and Sabrina Gherbaz (real estate).