CWB Financial Group has agreed to purchase iA Investment Counsel (iAIC), which includes T.E. Wealth and Leon Frazer & Associates.
Part of iA Financial, iAIC focuses on offering financial planning and wealth management services to HNW families in Canada.
Upon completion between May–July 2020, the deal will increase CWB’s wealth assets to over $8bn.
CWB anticipates that the deal will lower its regulatory capital ratios by nearly 30 basis points.
The transaction has been welcomed by Matt Evans. Evans is the president and CEO of CWB Wealth Management, a CWB unit offering trust and wealth management services.
Evans noted: “T.E. is a clear leader in complex financial planning with focused capabilities in corporate financial education and executive financial counselling.
“These capabilities complement CWB’s unique market position to serve successful entrepreneurs and business families. Leon Frazer brings a rich heritage in dividend-focused investing, and adds valuable diversification to our established in-house asset management capabilities.”
The deal, whose financial details were not revealed, awaits regulatory nod.
CWB expects the transaction to modestly support its adjusted cash earnings per share initially. The firm anticipates the deal to further add to its earnings from fiscal 2022.
On the other hand, iA Financial expects the deal to boost its solvency ratio by around one percentage point.
The deal is part of iA Financial’s plan to cater to Canada’s rich exclusively via independent investment advisory practices.
iA Wealth executive vice-president Carl Mustos said: “The sale of T.E. Wealth and Leon Frazer enables us to focus fully on investing in and building out our growing presence in the high-net-worth segment exclusively through the independent channel.”
