Former Walmart Canada Bank to Buy Fairstone Financial Holdings
Posted on 01/05/2021
Duo Bank of Canada (formerly Walmart Canada Bank) is a Schedule I Canadian Bank. Headquartered in Toronto, Duo Bank is privately held by an investor group led by funds managed by affiliates of Stephen Smith, Centerbridge Partners, L.P., and Ontario Teachers’ Pension Plan Board. Duo Bank announced the completion of the acquisition of all outstanding shares of Montreal-based Fairstone Financial Holdings Inc., a provider of credit solutions for near-prime borrowers with over $3 billion in assets on a consolidated basis. The acquisition includes all of Fairstone’s operations and subsidiaries as well as all the Company’s approximately 1,400 employees. Fairstone will continue to operate under its current brand. Terms of the transaction will not be disclosed.
This deal almost did not occur. In late 2019, Fairstone Financial Holdings was put up for sale through a competitive bid process in which Duo Bank won. On February 18, 2020, the parties signed a share purchase agreement in which Duo Bank agreed to buy the shares of Fairstone for a substantial premium. However, due to the COVID-19 outbreak, Fairstone’s financial condition weakened. A legal tangle insued with involvement of material adverse effects.
Advisers
RBC Capital Markets and CIBC Capital Markets acted as financial advisors and Torys LLP and Freshfields Bruckhaus Deringer US LLP were legal counsel to Duo Bank in connection with the transaction. McMillan acted as legal counsel to Stephen Smith, Willkie Farr & Gallagher LLP acted as legal counsel to Centerbridge Partners L.P. and Osler, Hoskin & Harcourt LLP acted as legal counsel to Ontario Teachers’.
Keywords: Ontario Teachers Pension Plan Board.
