Scotiabank has completed the sale of its banking operations in Colombia, Costa Rica and Panama to Davivienda, originally announced in January. Scotiabank now has a 20% stake in the Colombia-based institution. Their combined operations are held by a new holding company, Davivienda Group. The group’s operations in Colombia and Costa Rica will be known as DAVIbank; while those in Panama will operate under the Davivienda brand.
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CI Global Asset Management (GAM) has completed its acquisition of alternative investment manager Forge First. Terms of the deal, which adds four funds with combined assets under management of $900 million, were not disclosed. The Forge First investment team, led by Keenan Murray, will continue to manage the funds.
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Investment Planning Counsel (IPC), a subsidiary of Canada Life, has completed its acquisition of the wealth assets of De Thomas Wealth Management Corp. IPC adds $2.8 billion in assets under administration, bringing it to a total of $43 billion. The agreement was previously announced on Jul. 22, 2025, and will add 35 advisors to IPC’s national advisory network.
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AtkinsRéalis announced on Dec. 1 its acquisition of ADG Capital Pty Ltd, an engineering consultancy in Australia. The terms of the deal were not disclosed. The purchase will bring 250 professionals from ADG into AtkinsRéaliss. The firm says the deal positions it to capitalize on Australia’s significant investments in infrastructure and other high-growth customer end markets, such as defence and power and renewables.
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Barrick Mining Corp. is exploring an initial public offering (IPO) of its North American gold assets. The listing would offer a small minority interest in the new subsidiary, with Barrick retaining a controlling majority stake. The subsidiary would likely hold Barrick’s joint-venture interest in Nevada Gold Mines and the Pueblo Viejo mine in the Dominican Republic, as well as its wholly-owned Fourmile gold project in Nevada. The company expects to provide an update on the IPO in February 2026.
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Vancouver-based private debt shop Merchant Opportunities Fund announced an expansion of its syndicated revolving credit facility with the Bank of Montreal (BMO), to a total of up to $150 million. The facility consists of a $130-million committed amount, with an accordion of up to $20 million. The Merchant Opportunities Fund, which provides private investors access to institutional-grade returns and flexible liquidity, invests in short-term business and consumer loans from specialty finance firms. The fund has generated a compound annual return net of over 9% since its inception in 2010.
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EQB Inc. is buying PC Financial from Loblaws for around $800 million in EQB shares and cash, or around 1.15-times PC Financial’s book value. The deal includes President’s Choice Bank, PC Financial Insurance Agency Inc., PC Financial Insurance Brokers Inc. and certain other affiliated entities of PC Bank. EQB will issue around 7.2 million shares to Loblaw, representing 16% of its issued and outstanding common shares, with the remainder paid in cash. Before the deal closes, Loblaw expects to receive around $500 million in excess capital from PC Bank, bringing the deal’s total value to $1.3 billion. The transaction is expected to close next year.
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La Caisse and Investissement Québec have invested in The Honco Group, a Quebec-based steel processing company. The Honco Group provides operations in prefabricated steel buildings, structural steelwork, equipment manufacturing, doors and hardware.