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Bill Downe pledges that the new BMO Harris, which combined Harris Bank and recently acquired M&I, will be a regional powerhouse despite M&I's loss of market share and other problems.
January 10 -
Many big banks in debt-plagued Europe need to slim down and raise capital. As a result, experts say they expect more opportunities for U.S. banks to beef up as overseas conglomerates unload unwanted assets.
December 2
Are the Japanese itching to join the Canadians among the few foreign banks with the health — and desire — to go shopping for U.S. banking assets?
That is a question on the minds of U.S. investment bankers following two recent cross-border deals by Sumitomo Mitsui Financial Group Inc.
The Tokyo banking conglomerate
The RBS deal in particular illustrated that Sumitomo — on the prowl for acquisitions globally given a lack of growth opportunities in Japan — has the infrastructure in place to go after bigger deals in the states. Its deal team in New York enabled the Japanese company to coordinate around the clock with RBS' people in the U.K. and U.S., an industry source said.
Its investment in Moelis & Co.
Sumitomo is Japan's second biggest bank after the Mitsubishi UFJ Financial Group Inc.
Both have toeholds in the U.S. to build on. Sumitomo has commercial banking offices in California and Texas, and its U.S. headquarters in New York.
The question is not so much whether the two companies can bulk up in the states but whether they want to. The U.S economic outlook is better but still dicey, and higher returns may lie in Europe where banks are flooding the market with relatively cheap assets.
Japanese banks are able buyers for a few reasons. Because Japan averted the worst of the global financial crisis, they are flush with deposits and enjoy the backing of an undemanding investor base that enables them to borrow at low interest. The country has a strong currency as well.