CWB Financial Group acquires C$900M equipment finance and leasing assets of ECN Commercial and Vendor Finance Canada

On January 31, 2018, Canadian Western Bank Financial Group (CWB)  closed the C$900 million acquisition for cash of the Canadian Commercial and Vendor Finance assets of ECN Capital Corp. (ECN). The equipment finance and leasing assets  are fully aligned with CWB's balanced growth strategy, and the acquisition will support continued progress toward strategic objectives for industry and geographic diversification. The portfolio is primarily comprised of loans and leases concentrated within the transportation, construction and healthcare industries, with exposures broadly distributed across the country. CWB will leverage complementary strengths across its group of companies to successfully integrate this portfolio. This will include key operational and business development contributions from CWB National Leasing, CWB Equipment Finance and CWB Maxium.

CWB is based in Edmonton, and operates primarily in Western Canada. CWB provides specialized service in business and personal banking, trust and wealth management across Canada.

McCarthy Tétrault LLP advised CWB with a team led by  Robert Hansen that included Barry Ryan, David Woollcombe, David Badour, Neha Chawla (Corporate) and Gabrielle Richards (Tax).