Here are the top reads on deals and financial services over the last 24 hours,
FINANCIAL SERVICES NEWS
RBC’s mixed results set a cautiously optimistic tone as third-quarter earning season begins for Canadian banks: Royal Bank of Canada leaned on its retail-banking and wealth-management divisions to boost third-quarter profit and overcome a weak spell in capital markets, setting a cautiously optimistic tone as earnings season for Canada’s big banks begins. Canada’s largest bank by assets is the first major lender to report fiscal third-quarter results, and its performance was mixed. Story (James Bradshaw)
CEO of RBC Capital Markets announces retirement, discusses outlook for division: On Doug McGregor’s 11-year watch as chief executive, RBC Capital Markets grew from a regional player into a leading global investment bank, navigating storms that swept away far larger institutions. Story (Andrew Willis)
Ontario Teachers’ Pension Plan first half results show move toward fixed income: Ontario Teachers’ Pension Plan made a strong shift to bonds in the first half of the year and benefited from robust returns in fixed income. The pension plan said it posted an overall 6.3 per cent return in the first half of 2019 and closed the quarter with a portfolio of $198.5-billion. Fixed income led the returns, Teachers said. Story (David Milstead)
Manulife tripled CannTrust holdings before licence scandal, SEC records show: Manulife Asset Management jacked up its holdings of CannTrust Holdings Inc. stock in the second quarter – just in time for the company’s surprise disclosure that it was growing cannabis without a licence. Story (David Milstead)
Toronto fintech Drop sees $44-million in latest funding round: Royal Bank of Canada is backing an upstart loyalty-management program geared at millennials called Drop Technologies Inc. as part of a US$44-million venture-capital financing. Story (Sean Silcoff)
DEALS NEWS: MERGERS, ACQUISITIONS, IPOs and FINANCINGS
Pembina to acquire Kinder Morgan Canada and other assets in $4.35-billion deal: Pembina Pipeline Corp. is buying Kinder Morgan Canada Ltd. and the U.S. portion of a key condensate pipeline for $4.35-billion, a deal that will bolster its position in the high-demand oil storage and transport business. For Houston-based Kinder Morgan Inc., the sale marks its exit from Canada after it sold its largest asset – the Trans Mountain oil pipeline – to Ottawa last year for $4.4-billion. It follows a formal process to seek buyers for the majority-owned Canadian operation that ended in the spring after failing to attract acceptable proposals. Story (Jeffrey Jones)
Alibaba postpones up to $15-billion Hong Kong listing amid protests: sources: China’s biggest e-commerce company Alibaba Group Holding Ltd has delayed its up to $15-billion listing in Hong Kong amid growing political unrest in the Asian financial hub, two people with knowledge of the matter told Reuters. Story (Reuters)
IN CASE YOU MISSED IT
For Canadian bank stocks, ‘the risk/reward equation is not stacking up attractively’: Merrill Lynch bank analyst Ebrahim Poonawala has turned more cautious on Canadian banks ahead of upcoming profit reports. Story (Scott Barlow)
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