Fairstone Bank and Home Trust to merge
On March 26, 2024, Fairstone Bank of Canada ("Fairstone Bank") and Home Trust Company ("Home Trust") announced the signing of a definitive agreement to merge their respective businesses. Terms of the transaction were not disclosed.
The transaction will create the leading alternative lender in Canada and boast an extensive Canadian footprint servicing more than 2 million customers with more than 250 branches from coast to coast, offering diversified product lines, including residential and commercial mortgages, personal loans, credit cards, retail financing, auto financing, digital lending and consumer deposits.
The agreement provides that the transaction is subject to customary closing conditions, including regulatory approvals. Following closing, Smith Financial Corporation (“Smith Financial”) will own a majority interest in the combined entity. Fairstone Bank's current shareholders, Centerbridge Partners, L.P. (“Centerbridge”), Ontario Teachers' Pension Plan Board (“Ontario Teachers'”) and management, will continue as minority shareholders in the combined entity.
Further information can be found on Canada Newswire’s website.
Smith Financial is a family enterprise founded by Stephen Smith, one of Canada's leading financial services entrepreneurs. It invests for the long term in market-leading financial services companies with proven brands, client relationships and management teams.
Fairstone Bank and its subsidiary, Fairstone Financial Inc., provide a wide range of innovative financial services that enable Canadian consumers and businesses to achieve their goals. Collectively, Fairstone Bank and its subsidiaries offer credit cards and rewards programs, point-of-sale financing, automobile financing and fully digital personal loans through partners, in addition to unsecured and secured personal loans and mortgages online and at more than 250 branches coast to coast.
Home Trust is a federally regulated trust company offering residential and non-residential mortgage lending, securitization of residential mortgage products, consumer lending and credit card services. In addition, Home Trust Company and its wholly owned subsidiary, Home Bank, offer deposits via brokers and financial planners, and through a direct-to-consumer brand, Oaken Financial. Licensed to conduct business across Canada, Home Trust has offices in Ontario, Alberta, British Columbia, Nova Scotia, and Québec.
Centerbridge is a private investment management firm employing a flexible approach across investment disciplines—private equity, private credit and real estate—in an effort to develop the most attractive opportunities for our investors.
Ontario Teachers' is a global investor with net assets of C$247.5 billion as at December 31, 2023. It invests in more than 50 countries in a broad array of assets including public and private equities, fixed income, credit, commodities, natural resources, infrastructure, real estate and venture growth.