Here are the top reads on deals and financial services over the last 24 hours,
Callidus interim CEO Patrick Dalton resigns: The interim chief executive officer of alternative lender Callidus Capital Corp. has resigned without explanation, less than five months after signing on and weeks before the company is due to report year-end results. Story (Andrew Willis and Jeffrey Jones, for subscribers)
Barrick drops US$18-billion hostile bid, signs Nevada joint venture with Newmont Mining: Barrick Gold Corp and Newmont Mining Corp have agreed on terms of a joint venture in Nevada that will see Barrick drop its US$17.8-billion hostile bid for Newmont. The two giant mining companies met last week in New York to try to hash out a workable arrangement after Barrick’s biggest shareholder VanEck urged the Toronto-based miner to concentrate on a JV as opposed to pursuing a risky and uncertain takeover of its biggest rival. Story (Niall McGee)
Australia’s Newcrest Mining takes 70 per cent stake in B.C. mine from Imperial Metals: One of Australia’s largest miners is buying a majority interest in a B.C. mine from Imperial Metals Corp. for US$806-million, providing a cash injection for the struggling Vancouver company that is backed by billionaire executive Murray Edwards. Melbourne-based Newcrest Mining Corp. struck a deal on the weekend for 70 per cent of Imperial’s Red Chris property, a mine that opened three years ago and last year produced 12,000 ounces of gold. Story (Niall McGee, for subscribers)
Sidewalk Labs in talks with investors for Toronto smart-city infrastructure, document shows: Sidewalk Labs has been shopping for financing partners for infrastructure on Toronto’s eastern waterfront, entering into preliminary agreements with private investors and engaging in discussions with the Canada Infrastructure Bank about the proposed smart-city development, according to an internal document obtained by The Globe and Mail. A subsidiary of Google parent company Alphabet Inc., the urban-planning firm signed a deal with the tripartite development agency Waterfront Toronto in October, 2017, to develop a 12-acre plot at the foot of Parliament Street called Quayside, with the potential to extend some aspects of planning across much larger swaths of the waterfront. Story (Josh O’Kane and Bill Curry, for subscribers)
Gateway Casinos expects to resume marketing IPO to investors: President Donald Trump, a former casino owner, may have done Gateway Casinos and Entertainment Ltd. a favour by shutting down the U.S. federal government in late December. Burnaby, B.C.-based Gateway announced plans to go public on the New York Stock Exchange in late November, initially targeting the sale of US$100-million in shares. Story (Andrew Willis and Jeffrey Jones, for subscribers)
TD extends CEO Bharat Masrani’s pay agreement, gives him hefty compensation boost: Toronto-Dominion Bank has extended the pay agreement for chief executive officer Bharat Masrani, giving him financial incentives to stick around until the end of 2023. TD revealed in its proxy circular to shareholders that the company’s board asked Mr. Masrani, 62, to be available to serve as CEO past 2020, the year his existing compensation plan assumed he would retire. Story (David Milstead and James Bradshaw, for subscribers)
Black on Bay Street: Real talk on diversity, and the constant struggle: On the face of it, the question was innocent enough. Over drinks, Ray Williams was asked if, as one of the few black leaders in Canadian finance, he’d ever experienced racism on Bay Street. Mr. Williams, a managing director in the fixed income, currencies and commodities group at National Bank Financial, could hardly keep it together. “I started to giggle and almost snorted my drink through my nose,” he recalls. Story (Tim Kiladze, for subscribers)
How adding regulations may reduce the regulatory burden: How can adding new regulations reduce the regulatory burden? Simple. Picture what happens whenever a traffic light goes out of service at a busy intersection. Each car that approaches the intersection has to navigate uncertainty, unsure whether to proceed or stop, and traffic slows to a crawl as individuals try to guess how other drivers and pedestrians are going to act. What was a relatively smooth and efficient system has now become cumbersome and slow. Not because we added regulation, but because we removed it. Adding a traffic light at a busy intersection actually increases efficiency and reduces everyone’s burden. That’s why we should be wary of simplistic and unspecific calls to remove a “regulatory burden.” Regulations can certainly create burdens, but they can also remove them. Opinion (Kevin Thomas, for subscribers)
MORE DEALS NEWS
Gold merger: Gold research firm Shareholders’ Gold Council (SGC) on Monday criticized Goldcorp Inc’s decision to approve an additional payment for chairman Ian Telfer with regard to its proposed merger with Newmont Mining Corp. Story
Bank merger: Two top shareholders in Deutsche Bank are skeptical about a merger with its rival Commerzbank, doubting that such a combination would guarantee higher returns, people familiar with the matter said. Story
IPO: Levi Strauss & Co hopes to sell US$587 million worth of shares in an upcoming return to the stock market after three decades, which would value the inventor of blue jeans at $6.17 billion and give it a potful of cash to invest in broadening its product range. Story
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